Ancient Indian Colonies In The Far East Vol II Suvarnadvipa Part I Political History

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ANCIENT INDIAN COLONIES
IN THE

FAR EAST

VOL. II

SUVARNADVIPA

PART I Political History.

BY

Dr. R. C. Majumdar, M. A., Ph. D.,

Professor, Dacca University,

Author of Corporate Life in Ancient India, Outline of Ancient

Indian History and Civilisation, Qurjara-Pratlharas,

Early History of Bengal, The Arab Invasion

of India, etc.

DACCA
1937

Published ?
Asoke Kumar Majumdar,

Ramna, Dacca.

All Rights Reserved
1937

To be had of the following book-sellers :

1. Chuckervertty Chatterji & Co.

15, College Square, Calcutta.

2. Book Company

4/4A, College Square, Calcutta.

3. Punjab Sanskrit Book Depot.

Saidmitha Street, Lahore.

4. Greater India Society

21, Badnr Pagan Eoiv, Calcutta.

5. Asutosh Library

5, College Square, Calcutta, or

Patuatuly, Dacca (Bengal).

PRINTER

TRA1LOKYA CHANDRA SUR
A8UI08H PKJS88, DACCA

To

The Dutch Savants

whose labours have unfolded

a new and glorious chapter

of the
History of Ancient Culture and Civilisation

of India
this volume is dedicated

in token of

the respect, admiration, and gratitude
of the author.

PREFACE

The first volume of Ancient Indian Colonies in the
Far East, dealing with the colony of Champa, was published
in 1927. Various causes have delayed the publication of the
second volume. One of them is a change in the planning of
the different volumes. Originally I had intended to deal with
the history of Kamboja (Cambodia) in the second volume. As
the wonderful monuments of this kingdom were to constitute
an important part of the volume, I paid a visit to Cambodia
in order to obtain a first-hand knowledge of them. There,
in my conversation with the Archaeological authorities, I came
to learn for the first time that many novel theories were being
advanced regarding the age and chronological sequence of
the monuments of Angkor Thorn. I was advised to put off
the publication of my book until these had been fully explored.
Acting upon this advice I took up the history of Malayasia
which was to have formed the third volume. My knowledge
of Dutch being very poor at the time, I had to spend a long
time in mastering the contents of relevant books and Journals
which are mostly written in that language. Hence it has taken
me nearly nine years to prepare and bring this volume before the
public. The interval between the first and the second volume
has further been prolonged by several urgent pre-occupations.

It is needless to dilate on the difficulty of working on the
subject in India, without any possible help or advice from
any competent authority, and without any adequate library.
It would be hardly an exaggeration to say that the small
collection of books on the subject, which I have patiently
acquired for Dacca University during the last seven years,
is the best in India, but it is still very far from being adequate
or satisfactory. The study of the Indian Colonisation in
the Far East is still at its very infancy in this country. The
Greater India Society and its Journal are notable recent

PREFACE.

enterprises, but the establishment of a Central Institute with
facilities for the study of the subject is still a great desideratum.
At the time when I took up the task of writing a series of
studies on Indian Colonisation, the Society had not yet come
into existence, and there was no book, big or small, on the
subject in English language. As regards Java, the remark
still holds good, save for a small pamphlet published by the
Society, and a book on Indo-Javanese literature, published by
one of my pupils after the first draft of this book was ready.
I state these facts, not with the motive of claiming any special
credit, but with a view to craving the indulgence of the readers
for the many shortcomings which will be found in this pioneer
work.

When the book was completed, it proved too bulky for one
volume, and hence I thought it advisable to divide it into
two parts. The first part, now published, deals with the
political history and the system of administration. The
second part, now in press, deals with law, society, art,
religion, literature, and the economic condition of Suvarnadvlpa.

I have experienced considerable difficulty in the spelling of
proper names. As regards the Javanese names of persons
and places, I have followed the Dutch spelling, substituting y,
ch y and ^^ respectively, for dj\ ij, and oe. I have also used y
and v respectively for j and ?/>, except where these occur at
the beginning of a word. The modern Javanese personal
names are spelt exactly as in Dutch. As regards the Chinese
names, I have followed the English, French, and Dutch
spellings, according to the source from which I derived my
knowledge of them.

Originally I intended to insert in this volume a complete
collection of j Javanese inscriptions on the lines followed in
Volume I. But while this volume was in progress, my pupil
Mr. Himansu Bhusan Sarkar, M. A., a research-scholar working
under me, took up this work, and has now practically
completed it. I hope his 'Collection of Javanese Inscriptions'

will shortly be published, and hence I do not think it necessary
to add a third part dealing with the Javanese inscriptions.

As at present planned, the Second Part of this volume,
referred to above, will be published before the end of 1937.
The Third Volume, dealing with Kamboja (Cambodia and Siam),
will be published in two separate parts, one containing the
history, and the other the collection of inscriptions. I hope
these will be out before the end of 1939. Volume IV, forming
the sixth book of the series, and containing a general review
of Ancient Indian Colonies in the Far East, will, I hope,
be published by 1941.

The task of writing these volumes has been a painful and
laborious one, particularly as I have to work, for the most
part, in a remote Mofussil town, under heavy pressure of
administrative and other duties. I can only crave the
indulgence of my generous readers for the many errors which
must necessarily have crept into this book. My sole excuse
for the choice of this difficult undertaking is the general
apathy and ignorance in this country about this important
branch of study. If I succeed in removing them even to a
small extent, I shall consider my labours amply rewarded.

Ramna, Dacca. 1

> R. C. MAJUMDAK

The 7th of December, 1936. )

TABLE OF CONTENTS.

Page

Introduction ... ... ... i

Abbreviations ... ... ... x i

Additions and Corrections ... ... xvii

Maps 1. Malayasia ... \ f .

2. Central and Eastern Java J lacln P' L

Book L The Dawn of Hindu Colonisation.

Chapter

L The Land ... ... ... 1

II. The People ... ... ... 9

III. Prc-Hindu Civilisation in Malayasia ... 26

IV. Suvarnadvlpa ... ... ... 37

V. Early Hindu Colonisation in Malay Peninsula 65

VI. Early Hindu Colonisation in Java ... 91

VI T. Early Hindu Colonisation in Sumatra ... 116

VIII. Eurly Hindu Colonisation in Borneo ... 125

IX. Early Hindu Colonisation in Biili ... 132

X. Hindu Civilisation in Suvarnadvlpa up to the

end of the Seventh Century A.D. ... 138

Book II. The Sailendra Empire.

I. The Sailcndra Empire ( up to the end of the

Tenth Century A.D.) ... ... 149

II. The Struggle between the Sailendras and the

Colas ... ^ ... ... 167

III. Decline and Fall of the Sailendra Empire 191

Appendix ... ... ... 204

ii

11
Book III. Rise and fall of the Indo-Javanese Empire.

Chapter Page

I. The Kingdom of Matarfim ... 229

II. Else of Eastern Java ... ... 255

III. The Kingdom of Kadiri ... ... 276

IV. The Dynasty of Singhasari ... ... 292

V. The Foundation of Majapahit ... 308

VI. The Javanese Empire ... ... 319

VII. Downfall of the Empire ... ... 339

VIII. Sunda ... ... ... 356

Book IV. Downfall of Hindu Kingdoms in
Suvarnadvipa.

I. End of Hindu Rule in Sumatra ... 363

II. End of Hindu Rule in Malay Peninsula ... 378

III. End of Hindu Rule in Java ... ... 401

IV. End of Hindu Rule in Borneo ... 412
V. The Bali Island ... ... ... 419

VI. Political theory and public administration in Java 429

INTRODUCTION

I propose to deal in this volume with the Hindu colonisation
in Malay Peninsula and the Malay Archipelago. For this
entire region, now known as Malayasia, I have used the name
Suvarnadvipa. My authority for the use of this Indian name
in this wide sense is set forth in Chapter IV.

In this volume I have followed the same plan as was adopted
in the case of the earlier volume on Champa. I have tried
to bring together such information as we possess of the political
history of the different regions constituting Suvarnadvlpa,
and have also dealt with the various aspects of civilisation
of their people, viz., religion, literature, law and administration,
social and economic conditions, and art. I have not discussed
such general themes as the nature of Indian civilisation,
the influence of the Pallavas or of South India on the
civilisation of Sumatra and Java, the origin of art and alphabet
of these regions, and similar other questions which are
pertinent to the subject. These will be discussed in a
subsequent volume.

Although Suvarnadvlpa is a mere geographical expression
and a congeries of states, it came to be on two occasions,
at least, almost a political entity. First, under the Sailendra
kings from the end of the eighth to the beginning of the
eleventh century A.D., and, secondly, in the palmy days of
the Empire of Majapahit. Even in other periods, there has
almost always been a close political relationship, be it friendly
or hostile, between its constituent parts, such as we do not
meet with between any of them and the outside world.
Even now the predominance of the Malay-speaking people
all over the area serves as a bond of unity, which is also
artificially maintained to a large extent by common subjection
to the Dutch. Those considerations would be a further
justification of the choice of Suvarnadvipa as a historical unit,

11 INTRODUCTION

Our knowledge regarding the Hindu colonies in the
various small islands which dot the Pacific is very meagre,
and this volume primarily deals with the Indian colonies
settled in the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, Java, Bali, and
Borneo. The sources of information on which the accounts
are based will be found in detail in the body of the book,
but it may be convenient to give a general idea of them at
the very outset.

The sources may be broadly divided into two classes,
indigenous and foreign. Among indigenous sources, again,
the two most important sub-divisions are (1) archaeological, and
(2) literary.

The archaeological evidence consists mainly of inscriptions
and monuments, as coins play but little part in unfolding
the history of these countries. As regards inscriptions and
monuments, Java offers the richest field, and those in tho
other regions are far inferior both in quality and quantity.

The Sanskrit inscriptions of Java were studied by Kern,
and may now be conveniently consulted in his collected works
(Kern V. G.). The Kavi inscriptions have been collected
in two works by Cohen Stuart (K. O.) and Dr. Brandes
(O. J. O.). Other inscriptions have been noticed or edited
in the publications of the Dutch Archaeological Department,
particularly in O. V.

The monuments of Java are principally described in
three series of archaeological publications, m%^ (1) Rapporten
(2) O. V. and (3) Arch. Ond.

The last named series really consists of three monumental
works on Candi Jago, Candi Singasari, and Barabudur.
While one volume is devoted to each of the first two, that on
Barabudur consists of five big volumes. Two of these contain
only plates, and of the three volumes of texts, two give the
archaeological, and one, the architectural description of the
great monument. It may be noted that the two volumes on
archaeological description have been translated into English,

INTRODUCTION Ul

As regards the island of Bali, we have a collection of
inscriptions in Epigraphia Balica, Vol. I, by P. V, Stein
Callenfells. The results of more recent archaeological investiga-
tions are given by Stutterhcim in 'Oudheden Van Bali 7 .

The monuments of Sumatra and Borneo, which are in
Dutch possession, have been described in O. V. For those
of Malay Peninsula we have got a preliminary account by
M. Lajonquierre in B. C. A. I, 1909 and 1912.

As regards the literary sources of history, there are two
works in Java which may claim the highest rank :

The first is Nagara-Krtiigama, a poem written during the
reign of Hayam Wuruk, by Prapanca, who held the high
office of the Superintendent of the Buddhist Church in the
court of that king. It was composed in 1365 A.D., and,
although primarily concerned with the career of the king,
gives other historical informations of high value. It has been
translated by Kern (V. G., Vols. VII, VIII) and re-published
by Krom.

The second is a prose work called Pararaton. It is a sort
of historical chronicle beginning with the life of Ken Angrok,
and continuing the history of Java down to the end of the
Hindu rule. It gives dates for most of the events, but these
have not always proved to be correct. The book has no
doubt a genuine historical background, but the incidents
mentioned in it cannot always be regarded as historical
without further corroboration. The book was originally
edited and translated by Brandes (Par.), and a revised edition
has been published by Krom.

There are other modern historical works in Java arid Bali,
called Kidung, Babads, and Sajara which have preserved
traditions regarding their ancient history. These have been
referred to in detail in the chapter on Literature, Similar
works exist in Malay Peninsula, e.g., Sajarah Malayu.

Besides historical works, Java and Bali are rich in literature
of all kinds to which a detailed reference will be found in
the chapter on Literature.

IV INTRODUCTION

A very large part of this literature still exists in manuscripts
alone, but a few important texts have been ably edited,
some with a Dutch translation. There are very learned and
comprehensive catalogues of Javanese manuscripts by Vreede,
Brandes, and Juynboll. Among the published texts may be
mentioned, Rainayana, Mahabh&rata (portions only), Bharata-
yuddha, Arjunavivaha, Kunjarakarna, VrttasaScaya, Bhoma-
kavya, Galon Arang, Tantri Kamandaka, Megantaka, Dreman,
Lingga Peta, Nitisara, and various Kidung works, in addition
to several religious texts and one law-book. The former
include Sang hyang KamahaySnikan, a MahaySnist text,
and Agastya Parva, Brahmanda Purana, and Tantu Panggelaran,
all works of the nature of Purana, containing theology,
cosmogony and mythology. The law-book is Kutara-manava,
edited with notes and translation by Jonkcr. A fuller account
of these will be found in the chapters on Literature and
Religion.

The foreign sources may be subdivided into two classes,
the eastern and the western. To the former category
belong the Chinese, and to the latter, the Indian, Greek,
Latin, and Arabic texts. The Indian, Greek, and Latin
sources contain stray references to Malayasia and its
constituent parts, and occasionally, as in the case of
Ptolemy's Geography and Marco Polo's accounts, some
valuable geographical information. The Arab texts,
consisting principally of travellers' accounts, arc also very
valuable for a knowledge of the trade and commercial
geography of the whole region. But these western sources
do not offer much material for reconstructing the history of
Malayasia. For this we have to turn to the Chinese texts
which contain very valuable data for the political and cultural
history of the entire region.

The Chinese possessed special opportunities for obtaining
first-hand informations about the different regions of Malayasia,
as these had diplomatic and trade relations with China.
The envoys from these lands to the imperial court f and th$

accounts of the Chinese ambassadors who visited them,
must have furnished excellent materials to the official
Chroniclers who incorporated accounts of these foreign lands
in the histories of the Imperial dynasties. A number of
Chinese travellers also visited these far-off lands and recorded
short accounts of the countries visited by them. The traders
from these lands also imparted valuable information to
Chinese officials. Thus the Chinese annals possess a store
of information about Malayasia, which in quality and quantity
far exceed, in importance, what we know from other foreign
sources. In view of this, and as frequent references have been
made to these Chinese sources in the text, we give here a
short account of the Chinese texts on which we have principally
relied.

First, we have the famous Dynastic Histories. As is
wellknown, there are twenty-four official Histories which
deal with the history of China from the earliest time up to
the end of the Ming dynasty (1643 A.D.). The first book,
Che-ki, deals with the history of the country from the earliest
time up to 122 B. C. The other books deal separately with
the history of every dynasty which has since reigned in China.
The history of each dynasty was written after its downfall
with the help of the Government archives. It contains
accounts of foreign countries "which have always been
drawn up from the materials at hand, and may therefore
be considered to refer to the time when the dynasty still
existed, even if the time of their compilation and publication
falls considerably later *".

The following is a list of the Dynastic Histories, principally
referred to in this book. The date, given within brackets,
refers to the period covered by each.

1. History of the First Sung Dynasty (420-478 A. D.)

2. History of the Liang Dynasty (502-556 A. D.)

3. Old History of the T'ang Dynasty (618-906 A. D.)

I, Groeneveldt Notes, p. VII.

VI INTRODUCTION

4. New History of the Tang Dynasty (618-906 A. D.)

E. History of the Sung Dynasty (960-1279 A. D.)

6. History of the Yuan (Mongol) Dynasty (1206-1367 A.D.)

7. History of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1643 A. D.)

Among the non-official accounts, those of Fa-hien and
I-tsing (Record, Memoire) belong respectively to the fifth and
seventh centuries A. D. After a long interval we come across
regular accounts from the twelfth century onwards. These
are enumerated below with brief notes.

1. Ling-wai-tai-ta, by Chou kii-fei, Assistant Sub-Prefect
in Kui-lin, the capital of Kuang-si. It was composed in
1178 A. D.

2. Chu-fan-chi by Chau Ju-kua, Inspector of Foreign
Trade in Fu-kicn. The date of this work has been discussed
on p. 193.

The author had special facilities for obtaining information
on the subjects treated by him from the foreign sailors and
traders who frequented his port. Though he has relied on
Liug-wai-tai-ta for several sections of his work, those dealing
with San-fo-tsi and its subordinate states (which alone are
mainly used in this book) seem to be based exclusively on the
information gathered by him from Chinese and foreign traders 1 .

3. Tao-i Chih-lio or "Description of the Barbarians of the
Isles" by Wang Ta-yuan with the cognomen of Huan-Chang.
He visited, for purposes of trade, a considerable number of
foreign localities during the period 1341-1367 and recorded
what he had seen in this work. It is a personal and, conse-
quently, trustworthy record.

There are two dates in the work from which we may
conclude that the author was already travelling in 1330, and
that he probably put the last touches to his work after the
summer of 1349.

4-5. Ying-yai Sheng-lan by Ma Huan and Hsing-Cha Sheng-
lan by Fei Hsin. Both Ma Huan and Fei Hsin accompanied
I. Chau Ju-kua, pp, 22, 36.

INTRODUCTION Vll

the famous eunuch Cheng Ho in some of his voyages. These
voyages were undertaken at the command of the Emperor with
a view to exploring foreign lands for commercial purposes and
demonstrating to them the might and prestige of the Chinese
Empire 1 . Some idea of these voyages may be obtained from
the fact that in one of them Cheng Ho is said to have taken
forty-eight vessels and 27,000 Imperial troops with him. Cheng
Ho made altogether seven voyages between 1405 and 1433 AJX,
and visited thirty-six (or thirty-seven) countries, in Malayasia,
India, Arabia, and Africa.

Both Ma Huan and Fei Hsin must have gathered materials
for their work from the voyages they undertook. Ma Huan
was attached to the suite of Cheng Ho as "Interpreter of
foreign languages and writing to the mission ." Fei Hsin was
'presumably a secretary or clerk'. Both of them had thus
splendid opportunities of gaining first-hand knowledge about
these foreign lands, and this invests their chronicles with a
special importance.

The original text of Ma Huan was revised by Chang Sheng,
and Rockhill has made a confusion between the original and
the revised text. The whole matter has, however, been clearly
set forth by Pel Hot.

Rockhill assigned the first publication of Ma Huan's work
to a date between 1425 and 1432 A. D. Pelliot is, however,
of opinion that the first edition of the work really appeared in
1416, the date given in the preface to the work, soon after Ma
Huan's first voyages in 1413-15 A. D.

The work was evidently enlarged after the two subsequent
visits in 1421-2 and 1431-3, and completed about 1433. But
the book probably appeared in its final form only in 1451 A.D.*

It is not necessary to refer in detail to the other Chinese
works to which occasional reference has been made in the
following pages.

1. For full discussion on this point cf. T'oung Pao. 1934, pp. 303 ft.

2. Cf. T'oung Pao, 1933, pp. 236 ff.
iii

viii INTRODUCTION

Excepting the Indian texts, it has not been possible for
me to consult the other sources in original. Fortunately,
reliable translations by able and competent scholars are
available for most of them.

The Greek and Latin texts have been translated by
Ccedfcs ( Ccedes-Textcs ), and the Arab Texts by Ferrand
( Ferrand-Textes ), both into French. For the Chinese sources
the following deserve special mention.

I. Translation.

1. Translation of Fa-hien's account by Legge.

2. Translation of I-tsing's works by Takakusu and
Chavanncs ( I-tsing-Record, I-tsing-Memoire ).

3. Translation of Chan Ju-kua's work by Hirth and
Rockhill ( Chau Ju-kua ).

II. Translation of Extracts.

4. W. P. Groeneveldt Notes on the Malay Archipelago
and Malacca ( Batavia 1877 ).

[ Supplementary Jottings T'oung Pao, Scr. I, Vol. VII,
pp. 113 ff. ].

5. W. W. Rockhill Notes on the relations and trade
of China with the Eastern Archipelago and the coasts of
the Indian ocean during the Fourteenth Century. T'oung
Pao, Serie II, Vol. XVI (1915), pp. 61 ff., 236 ff., 374 ff.,
435 ff., 604 ff.

III. Critical Discussion.

6. P. Pelliot Deux Itineraires de Chine en Indio & la
fin du VIII 8 sifccle ( B.E.F.E.O., Vol. IV, pp. 132-413 )

7. Schlegel Geographical Notes. T'oung Pao, Ser. I,
Vol. IX. ( pp. 177 ff, 191 ff, 273 ff, 365 ff ) ; Vol. X ( pp. 33 ff,
155 ff, 247 ff, 459 ff ) ; Ser. II, Vol. II ( pp. 107 ff, 167 ff,
329 ff. )

INTRODUCTION IX

8. J. J. L. Duyvendak Ma Huan re-examined ( Verhand.
der. Kon. Ak. van Wetensch., Afd. Lettcrkunde, N. R M d.
XXXII, no 3, Amsterdam, 1933. )

9. P. Pelliot Lcs Grands Voyages Maritimes Chinois
au Debut du XV e sifecle ( T'oung Pao, Vol. XXX, 1933,
pp. 236-452 ; Vol. XXI, pp. 274 ff. )

[ This is by way of review of the preceding book. ]
Before leaving this subject we must also mention the works
of Ferrand who has collected all the sources of information
about Sri-Vijaya and Malayu-Malakka in two articles in
Journal Asiatique ( J.A. II, XX ; J.A. II, XI-XII ).

Of the modern historical works dealing with the subject,
those by Raffles, Fruin-Mees, With, and Veth have all been
cast into shade by Kroni's 4 Hindoe-Javaansche Geschiedenis'
which is bound to remain the standard work on the political
history of Java for many years to come. Krom's other
work, Inleiding tot de Hindoe-Javaansche Kunst, is equally
valuable for the history of Javanese art. It is with pleasure
and gratitude that I recall the fact that these two books formed
the foundation of my study of Javanese history, and I have
freely utilised them in the following pages. The second edition
of the first named work reached my hands after the first draft
of this book was composed. Although I have utilised the new
edition in the revision of my book, references given are
mostly to the first edition.

For the religious history of Java the works of Goris and
Pigeaud (Tantu), and the numerous articles by various scholars,
have been of the greatest assistance to me as they are sure
to prove to others.

As regards Literature, the Catalogues of Manuscripts
( Cat. I, II, III ), and the works by Berg (specially Hoofdlijrien,
Mid. Jav. Trad, and Inleiding), Pandji Roman by Rassers, and
several articles, notably the one by Berg in B. K. I., Vol. 71
( pp. 556-578 ), have been most useful to me. Not being
acquainted with the Kavi language, I had to derive my

X INTRODUCTION

knowledge of Javanese literature mainly from these and the
few translations of texts that have been published so far.

Of the secondary sources for the history and civilisation
of Malayasia, by far the most important are the learned
articles contributed to T. B. G. and B. K. I, the organs of the
two famous institutions that have done yeoman's work in
rescuing from oblivion the glorious past of Java and the
neighbouring islands. These articles touch upon every aspect
of the subject and are of inestimable value to anyone who
seeks to study the history of Indonesia.

It will be seen from the above that our data regarding
the history of the different regions is very unequal. While
we possess, in an abundant degree, evidences, both literary
and archaeological, for the history and civilisation of Java,
these are very meagre when we come, for example, to Borneo.
Between these two extremes we may place, in order of
adequacy of historical materials, Bali, Malay Peninsula, and
Sumatra.

It would be wrong, however, to imagine that the degree
of importance, which should be attached to the different regions,
is in any way proportionate to the extant evidences regarding
them. The absence of evidence available to us may be quite
accidental. The archaeological evidence is mostly perishable,
save in the case of massive monuments such as we find in
Java. As to the Chinese evidence, the Chroniclers could only
record events when there was any intercourse with one of these
states. A state would come in and go out of their history
according as it sent any embassy to China ( or rice versa )
or ceased to 'do so. The absence of evidence, therefore, should
not lead us to infer the political insignificance of a state, far
less its non-existence,

ABBREVIATIONS

A. B. I. A. = Annual Bibliography of Indian Archaeology

(Published by Kern Institute, Leyden).

Ann. Rep. Arch. Surv.= Annual Report of the Archaeological
Survey ot India.

Arch. Ond.=Archaeologisch Onderzock op Java en Madura
(By the Commission appointed in 1901), 3 volumes
dealing respectively with Tjandi Djago, Tjandi
Singasari, and Barabudur.

Arch. Surv.= Archaeological Survey Report (Provincial).

B. C. A. I.=Bulletin dc la commission Archaeologique de

Wndochine.

Beal= Buddhist Records of the Western World, Translated
from the Chinese of Hiuen Tsiang by Samuel Beal
(London, 1906).

B. E. F. E. O.=Bulletin de 1'Ecole Frangaisc d'Extr&me-Oricnt,
(Hanoi).

Berg-Hoof cllijnen = Hoof dlij nen der Javaansche Litteratuur-
Geschiedenis by C. C. Berg (1929)

Berg-Inleiding=Inleiding tot de studio van het Oud-Javaansch

(1928)
Bib-Jav=Bibliotheca Javanica

B. K. I^=Bijdragen tot dc taal-, land- en Volkenkunde van
Nederlandsch-Indie, uitgegcven door het Koninklijk
Instituut voor de Taal-, land- en Volkenkunde van
Nederlandsch Indie

Cat. L= Supplement op den Catalogus van de Javaansche en
Madoerecsche Handschriften der Leidsche Univer-
siteits-Bibliotheek by Dr. H. H. Juynboll. Leiden,
VoLI (1907), Vol. II (1911),

x ABBREVIATIONS

Cat. EE. - Supplement op den Catalogus van de Sundaneesche
Handschriftcn en Catalogus van Balineesche en
Sasaksche Handschriften der Leidsche Universi-
teits-Bibliotheek by Dr. H. H. Juynboll (1912).

Cat. III. = Catalogus van de Maleische en Sundaneesche Hand-
schriftcn der Leidsche Universiteits-Bibliotheek
by Dr. H. H. Juynboll (1890).

Cat. IV.=Juynboll-Catalogus van 's Rijks Ethnographisch
Museum.

Chau Ju-kua=Chu-fan-chi* by Chau Ju-kua. Translated by
P. Hirth and W. W. Eockhill. St. Petersburgh
(1911).

Coedes-Textes=Textes d'auteurs Grecs et Latins relatifs a
1' Extreme-Orient depuis le IV e stecle Av. J. C.
jusqu'au XIV sifecle. Kecueillis et traduits par
George Coedfes (Paris-Ernest Leroux, 1910).

Cohn-Ind.=Indische Plastik von William Cohn (Berlin, 1923)

Congres I=Handelingen van het eerste Congres voor de taal-,
land- en volkenkunde van Java, 1919 (Albrecht
& Co-Weltevreden).

Coomaraswamy=Ananda K. Coomaraswamy History of Indian
and Indonesian Art (1927).

Crawfurd-Dictionary=A Descriptive Dictionary of the Indian
Islands and Adjacent Countries by John Crawfurd,
London (1856)

Encycl. Ned. Ind.= Encyclopaedic van Nederlandsch-Indie,
Second Edition (1919).

Ep. Carn.=Epigraphia Carnatica.

Ep. Ind.=Epigraphia Indica.

Fa-hien=A record of Buddhistic Kingdoms by Fa-hien. Tran-
slated by J. Legge (Oxford, 1886).

Feestbundel=Feestbundel uitgegeven door Koninklijk Bataviaa-
sch Genootschap van Kunsten en Wetenschappen
bei gelegenheid van zijn 150-jarig Bestaan 1778-
1928 (G.KolflFA Co, 1929),

Ferrajid-Texte8=r Relations de Voyages etTextes.Geographiques
Arabes, Pereans et Turks relatifs a PExtrSme-
Orient du VHI* au XVHP sifecles by Gabriel
Ferrand, 2 Vols (Paris-Ernest Leroux 1913-14).

Foucher-Etude, I=tude sur 1'Iconographie Bouddhique de
l ; Inde by A. Foucher (Paris, 1900).

Foucher-Etude, II.=Do-Paris, 1905

Friederich-Bali=An account of the Island of Bali by Dr. R.
Friederich (Miscellaneous Papers relating to Indo-
China and the Indian Archipelago, Second Series,
Vol. II, London, 1887).

Fruin-MeesGeschiedenis van Java by W. Fruin-Mees.
Part I (2nd Edition, Weltevreden, 1922).

Gerini-Researches= Researches on Ptolemy 's Geography of
Eastern Asia by Colonel G. E. Gerini, London
(1909).

Goris=Bijdrage Tot de kennis der Oud-Javaansche en
Balincesche Theologie by R. Goris. Leiden, 1926.

Groenevcldt-Notes= Notes on the Malay Archipelago and
Malacca compiled from Chinese Sources by W. P.
Grocneveldt. V. B. G. Vol. XXXIX, Part I.
(Batavia, 1877)

I. A. L.= Indian Art and Letters.
I. C.== Indian Culture (Calcutta).
I. H. Q.=Indiaii Historical Quarterly (Calcutta).
Ind. Ant, = Indian Antiquary.

Indian Art=The Influences of Indian Art. Published by the
India Society 1925.

I-tsing-Memoire=Memoire compost a 1'epoque de la grande
dynastic T'ang stir les Religieux Eminents qui
allerent cherchcr la loi dans les pays d'occident
par I-tsing. Translated by E. Chavannes (Paris
1894).

XIV ABBREVIATIONS

I-tsing-Record=A Record of the Buddhist religion ad

practised in India and the Malay Archipelago (A.D.

671-695) by I-tsing. Translated by J. Takakusu

(Oxford, 1896).
J. A.=Journal Asiatique.
J. A. S. B.=Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal (1865-

1904).

J. A. S. B. N. S.-Do, New Series (1905-1934).
J. A. S. B. L.=Do (Letters, from 1935).
J. Bo. Br. R. A. S.= Journal of the Bombay Branch of the Royal

Asiatic Society.
J. B. O. R. S.= Journal of the Bihar and Orissa Research

Society.

J. F. M. S. M.= Journal of the Federated Malay States Museum.
J. G. I. 8.= Journal of the Greater India Society.
J. I. H.= Journal of Indian History.
J. Mai. Br. R. A. S.= Journal of the Malay Branch of the Royal

Asiatic Society.
Jonker Wetboek=Een Oud-Javaansch Wetboek vergeleken

met Indischc Rcchtsbronnen by J. C. G. Jonker

(Leiden, 1885).

J. R. A. S. Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great

Britain and Ireland.
J. Str. Br. R. A. S.= Journal of the Straits Branch of the Royal

Asiatic Society.

Kernpers=The Bronzes of Naltmda and Hindu Javanese
Art by Dr. A. J. Bernct Kempers (Leiden)
(Originally published as an article in B. K. I. Vol.
90, pp. 1-88).

K. O.=Kawi Oorkonden'in Facsimile Met Inleiding en Trans-
criptie by Dr. A. B. Cohen Stuart (Leiden, 1875).

Krom Geschiedenis=Hindoe-Javaansche Geschiedenis by Dr.
N. J. Krom (Martinus Nijhoff, Hague, 1926). The
second Edition ( 1931 ) is indicated by Krom-
Geschiedenis 1 .

ABBREVIATIONS xv

Krom-Kunst=Inleiding tot de Hindoe-Javaansche Kunst by
Dr. N. J. Krom (Martinus Nijhoff, Hague, 1923).

Levi-Texts= Sanskrit Texts from Bali by Sylvain Levi

(Gaekwad Oriental Series).
Mid. Jav. Trad.==Bcrg De Middeljavaansche Historische

Traditie (1927).
Nag. Kr.=Nagara-Krtagama Edited by H. Kern (V. G. Vols.

VII-VIII).
N. I. O. N.=Nederlandsch Indie, Oud en Nieuw

Not. Bat. Gen.=Notulen van dc Algemecne en Bestuurs-
vergaderingen van het Bataviaasch Genootsehap
van Kunstcn en Wctcnschappen.

O. B.=Oudheden van Bali by Dr. W. F. Stuttcrheim (Singradja,

1929).
O. J. O.=Oud-Javaansche Oorkonden. Nagelaten Transcrip-

ties van Wijlen Dr. J. L. A. Brandes. Uitgegeven

door Dr. N. J. Krom ; V. B. G. Vol. LX. (Batavia

and the Hague, 1913.)

O. V.==Oudhcidkundig Vcrslag (Rapporten van den Oudheid-
kundig Dienst in Nederlandsch Indie, Series I,
1912-1919 ; Scries II. 1920 etc.)

Par=Pararaton of Hot Bock der Koningen van Tumapcl en van
Majapahit door Brandes ; Tweede Druk door Dr.
N. J. Krom (V. B. G. Deel LXII), 1920.

Poerbatjaraka-Agastya=Agastya in den Archipel by Poerba-
tjaraka (Lesya) (Leiden, 1926).

Raffles- Java The History of Java by Sir Thomas Stamford
Raffles, 2nd Edition (London, 1830).

Rapporten=Rapporten vande Commissiein Nederlandsch-Indie
voor Oudheidkundig Ondcrzoek op Java en
Madura, 1901 etc.

Rum-Serams=Dc Rum Serams op Nieuw-Guinea of Het
Hinduismc in het Oosten van onzen Archipel door
Dr. D. W. Horst (Leiden, 1893).
iv

ABBBEVIATIONS

Sarkar-Literature= Indian Influences on the Literature of Java
and Bali, Calcutta, 1934.

Sastri-Colas='The Colas' by Prof. K. A. Nilakanta Sastri,
Madras, 1935.

S. I. Ep. Rep. = Annual Report on South Indian Epigraphy.

S. I. L= South Indian Inscriptions.

Tantu=De Tantu Panggelaran by Th. Pigeaud (Hague, 1924).

T. B. G.=Tijdschrift voor Indische Taal-, Land- en Volken-
kunde van het Bataviaasch Genootschap van
Kunsten en Wetenschappen (1853 cfr.), Batavia.

V. B. G.=Verhandelingen van het Bataviaasch Genootschap
van Kunsten en Wetenschappen, Batavia.

V. G.=Verspreide Geschriften van Prof. Dr. H. Kern.

ADDITIONS AND CORRECTIONS

Page 7, 1. 5. Mr. Oldham has definitely identified Paloura
with the "existing village of Paluru at the
northern extremity of the Gaiijam district,
about 6 miles N.E. of Ganjam town/' (J.B.O.R.S.,
Vol. XXII, pp. 1 ff.).

Page 25, f.n. 2. Reference may be made to the following
statement : "The Malay Peninsula is the
fatherland of the Malays who colonised centuries
ago Sumatra " ( Toung Pao 1898, p. 370.).

Page 27, 11. 8-16. For a recent example in the neighbourhood
of Vanasari ( Jogyakerta ), cf. T. B. G., 1935,
pp. 83 ff.

Page 29, f.n. 1. Add at the end : "and 'History of Malaya (1935)
Chapter I."

Page 81, 1. 5. The scholars are now inclined to refer the
seal to about 600 A.D. Cf. J. Mai. Br. R.A.S.,
Vol. XII ( 1934 ), p. 173 ; Vol. XIII ( 1935 ),
p. 110 ; J.G.I.S., Vol. II, p. 71.

Pages 96-7. Mr. H. B. Sarkar suggests (J.A.S.B., Vol. XXIX,
pp. 17-21) that as a result of the conquests
of Skandagupta, a large body of Sakas from
Gujarat, under a local chieftain, probably Aji
Saka by name, emigrated to Java and introduced
the Saka Era. The arguments in support of
this theory do not appear to me to be very
convincing.

Page 99. paras 1-2. Dr. J. Przyluski holds that 'the most
ancient travellers did not make a clear
distinction between the islands of Java and
Sumatra, and these two great islands formed
the continent of Yava. Probably for Ptolemy
and for all the ancient geographers Yava is
Java-Sumatra/ (J.G.I.S., Vol. I, p. 93)

XVlii ADDITIONS AND CORKECTIOtf &

Page 106, 11. 9-11. A Shell inscription is engraved at Ci-Aruton
below the foot-prints of king Parnavarman.
Dr. K. P. Jayaswal reads it as "Sri Purnna-
varmanat" ( Ep. Ind., Vol. XXII, p. 4 ), but
it is, at best, doubtful.

Mr. F. M. Schnitger draws attention to a reference to
Tarumapur in an inscription of Kulottunga (S.LI., Vol. Ill,
Part 2, p. 159). It is about ten miles north of Cape Comorin,
the region from which Agastya worship spread to the
Archipelago. Schnitger finds in the name Taruma an
additional argument for the southern origin of Purnavarman
(T.B.G., 1934, p. 187.).

Page 142, 11. 4-5. Cf. also Schlegel's views ( Toung Pao,
Ser. II, Vol. II, pp. 109 ff. ).

Book I

THE DAWN OF HINDU COLONISATION

SUVARNADVlPA

Chapter I.

THE LAND

The Malay Peninsula and the Malay Archipelago constitute
together the region known as Malayasia. Although this name
is not in general use, we prefer to adopt it as it very nearly
coincides with the group of ancient Indian colonies in the Far
East with which we propose to deal in this volume.

The Malay Peninsula forms the most southerly part of
the mainland of Asia. It is a long narrow strip of land
projecting into the China sea and connected with the mainland
by the Isthmus of Era. In spite, however, of this connection
with land, the peninsula belongs, geographically, to the Malay
Archipelago and not to the Asiatic continent. The Malay
Archipelago is also designated Indian Archipelago, East
Indies, Indonesia, Asiatic Archipelago or Insulinde. It
begins with the large island of Sumatra which lies to the
west of the Malay Peninsula and is separated from it by the
Straits of Malacca. The narrow Sunda Strait parts Sumatra
from the neighbouring island of Java to its south-east. Java
is the beginning of a series of islands lying in a long chain
in the direction from west to east. These are Bali, Lombok,
Sumbawa, Flores and a number of small islands which almost
stretch upto New-Guinea. A little to the south of this line
are the two important islands, Sumba and Timor.

A similar chain of islands lies to the north, along a line
drawn through the centre of Sumatra towards the east. It

2 THE LAND

begins with Borneo, the largest island in the archipelago.
Next comes Celebes, and then the large group of islands
known as the Moluccas or Spice islands.

Beyond all these islands, numbering more than six thousand,
lie the large island of New Guinea to the east and the group
of islands known as the Philippines to the north.

The Archipelago is separated from Indo-China in the
north by the South China Sea and from Australia in the south
by the Timor Sea. To the west there is no large country
till we reach the shores of India and Africa, the intervening
sea being dotted with hundreds of islands. The most important
of these, beginning from the cast are Andaman, Nicobar,
Ceylon, Maldives, Laccadives and Madagascar.

As Wallace has pointed out, it is seldom realised that the
dimensions of the Archipelago are really continental. "If
transferred to Europe and the western extremity placed on
lands' End, New-Guinea would spread over Turkey." It
extends over 50 degrees of longitude (100 to 50) and nearly
25 degrees of latitude (10S. to 15N.)

It is a very singular characteristic of the Archipelago that
one part of it, including Borneo, Celebes, Sumatra, Java and
Bali is separated by shallow sea from Asia, and the other
part, including New Guinea, Flores, and Lombok is similarly
separated from Australia. Between these two parts, however,
the depth of the sea has been found to be from 1000 to 3,557
fathoms, although in some places, as between Bali and Lombok,
the two regions are separated by a strait not more than
15 miles wide. The study of the fauna corroborates the natural
difference between these two regions, and we might accordingly
divide the Archipelago into an Asiatic and an Australian Zone.

Wallace, who has gone more deeply into this question
than any other scholar, postulates from the above premises
that Sumatra, Java, Bali and Borneo formed at one time a
part of the continent of Asia. He describes their evolution
into separate islands as follows :

SUVAENADVlPA 3

"Beginning at the period when the Java Sea, the Gulf of
Siam, and the straits of Malacca were dry land, forming with
Borneo, Java and Sumatra a vast sothern extension of the
Asiatic continent, the first movement was probably the sinking
of the Java Sea as the result of volcanic activity, leading
to the complete and early separation of Java. Later Borneo,
and afterwards Sumatra, became detached and since
then many other elevations and depressions have taken
place."

Similar observations are made by Wallace regarding other
parts of the Archipelago. As we arc mainly concerned with that
part of it alone which includes Sumatra, Java, Bali and
Borneo, we need not pursue these interesting investigations
any further.

A detailed account of the more important islands will be
given separately when we deal with them individually in
subsequent chapters. Here we need mention only a few
general characteristics of the Archipelago.

The equator passes almost through the centre of the
Archipelago, and, excepting the northern half of the Philippines,
nearly the whole of the Archipelago lies within ten degrees
of latitude on cither side. In consequence warm summer
prevails throughout the year and the only change of seasons
is that from dry to wet. The whole of this region is within
the influence of the monsoons but free from hurricanes.

The Archipelago is eminently a mountainous region and a
volcanic band passes through it "in a sweeping curve
five thousand miles long, marked by scores of active and
hundreds of extinct craters. It runs through Sumatra and Java,
and thence through the islands of Bali, Lombok, Flores to
Timor, curving north through the Moluccas, and again north,
from the end of Celebes through the whole line of the
Philippines. The zone is narrow ; and on either side the
Malay Peninsula, Borneo, Celebes, and New Guinea have np

4 THE LAND

known volcanoes, and are apparently not subject to serious
disturbances/' 1

The geographical position of Malayasia invested it with a
high degree of commercial importance. Situated on the highway
of maritime traffic between China on the one hand and western
countries like India, Greece, Rome and Arabia on the other,
it was bound to develop important centres of trade and
commerce. The route to China from the west lay either through
the Straits of Malacca or along the western coast of Sumatra
and then through the Sunda Strait. Thus Sumatra and
Malay Peninsula, and, to a certain extent, Java also profited
by this trade. The main volume of this trade must always have
passed through the Straits of Malacca, and sometimes, perhaps,
the goods were transported by land across the Isthmus of Kra
in order to avoid the long voyage along the eastern and western
coasts of the Malay Peninsula.

Malayasia has been famous in all ages for its timber and
minerals and almost enjoyed the monopoly in spices. This
was undoubtedly the main reason why the western nations
were attracted to this corner of Asia from very early times.
This was particularly true of India and China which were the
nearest countries to the Archipelago that possessed a highly
developed civilisation from an early period.

There was a regular maritime intercourse between India
and the Far East as early at least as the first century A. D.
This is definitely proved by the statement in the Periplus that
ships from Indian ports regularly sailed to Chrysc, and there

I, The preliminary account of the Archipelago is based on the
following works :

(a) Major C. M. Enriquez Malaya ( Hurst and Blackett, 1927 ).

(b) John Crawfurd Dictionary of the Indian Islands and adjacent
countries ( London, 1856 ).

(c) A. Cabaton Java, Sumatra and the other islands of the
Dutch East Indies (T. Fisher Unwin, 1911 ).

SUVARNADVlPA 5

was a brisk trade relation between the two. 1 As we shall see
later Chryse was a vague name applied to Malayasia.

The further statement in the Periplus, that after Chryse
"under the very north, the sea outside ends in a land called
This," is of singular importance, inasmuch as 'This' undoubtedly
stands for China. As Clifford has pointed out, this tends
to prove "that the sea-route to China via the Straits of Malacca
even though it was not yet in general use, was no longer
unknown to the mariners of the cast." This is confirmed by
the fact that not long afterwards the sailor Alexander sailed
to the Malay Peninsula and beyond ; for, to quote again
from Clifford, "it may safely be concluded that the feasibility
of this south-eastern passage had become known to the
sea-farers of China long before an adventurer from the west
was enabled to test the fact of its existence through the means
of an actual voyage." 2

The author of the Periplus docs not seem to have possessed
any definite information or accurate knowledge of the Far East.
The reason seems to bo that there was no direct communication
between the Coromandcl coast and the Far East, but the voyage
was made from the Gangctic region either direct or along the
coast of Bay of Bengal. This follows from the fact that
whenever Chryse is mentioned in the Periplus it is invariably
associated with the Ganges. As this aspect of the question
has not been generally recognised I may quote below the
relevant passages from SchofPs translation.

1. Referring to the Chola country the author says ; "Among
the market-towns of these countries, and the harbours where
the ships put in from Damirica (Tamil land) and from the north,
the most important are, in order as they lie, first Camara, then
Poduca, then Sopatma ; in which there are ships of the country

1. The Periplus of the Erythraean sea ( edited by W. H. Schoff
Longmans, 1912 ) pp, 45-48-

2, Ibid. p. 260.

6 THE LAND

coasting along the shore as far as Damirica ; and other very
large vessels made of single logs bound together called sangara ;
but those which make the voyage to Chryse and to the Ganges
are called eolandia^ and are very large." (p. 46)

2. "After these, the course turns towards the east again,
and sailing with the ocean towards the right and the
shore remaining beyond to the left, Ganges conies into
view, and near it the very last land towards the east,
Chryse." (p. 47)

3. "And just opposite this river (the Ganges) there is an
island in the ocean, the last part of the inhabited world
toward the east, under the rising sun itself ; it is called
Chryse." (p. 48)

Thus there is hardly any doubt that to the author of the
Periplus Chryse is closely associated with the Gangetic region.
The last sentence in the first passage may be taken to imply
a direct voyage to Chryse, but it is at least very doubtful.
Besides, it is to be remembered, that the author of the Periplus
himself says that the coasting voyage was the order of the day,
and he narrates the striking discovery by Hippalus of a direct
voyage to the west coast of India from African shore. 1 It is
difficult to believe that the author would not have referred to
a direct voyage from the Coromandcl coast to the Far East, if
such a course was known in his time, at least in passage
No. 1. quoted above.

This view is confirmed by Ptolemy. He refers to the
aplieterium, immediately to the south of Paloura, where the
vessels bound for the Malay Peninsula "ceased to follow the
littoral and entered the high seas"*. 8. L6vi has shown that
the city of Paloura, which played such an important part
in the eastern ocean trade of India was the same as the
famous city of Dantapura, in Kalinga, which figures so

i. Ibid. p. 45.

3. Ptolemy. ( M'c. Crindle ), pp. 66, 69.

SUVARNADVfPA 7

prominently in the Buddhist literature. Thus even in
Ptolemy *s days there was no direct voyage from the Coromandel
coast, but in addition to the coastal voyage along the Bay of
Bengal from Tamralipti, a direct voyage to the east was
made from Paloura near modern Chicacole. 1 It is difficult,
therefore, to accept the view, generally held on the authority
of the Periplus, that there was a direct voyage between
South India and the Far East in the first century A. D. 8

It cannot, of course, be maintained that a direct voyage
between South Indian ports and Malay Peninsula was an
impossible one. All that we learn from Ptolemy is that the
usual point of departure for the Far East was near Paloura.
It is possible, however, that occasionally ships sailed direct from
Coromandel coast to the cast, or via Ceylon and Andaman
Islands to the coast of Sumatra. 8

The fame of Paloura or Dantapura, in Kaliiiga ( the
coastal region between the Mahanadl and the Godavarl ),
was no doubt due, at least to a great extent, to its
importance as the point of departure for the Far East. That
probably also explains why the Chinese referred to Java and
other islands of the Archipelago as Kling, no doubt an
abbreviation of Kalinga. All these point out to Kalinga as
the particular region in India which was more intimately
connected, through its port Paloura, with the Far East in
the early period.

There were important ports on the opposite coast also.
In the Malay Peninsula we have reference to Takkola in
classical writings, to Kala by Arab writers and to Singapore
and Malacca by the Portuguese. In Sumatra the most important

1. J. A. 1925, pp. 46-57. G. Jouveau-Dubreuil held the view that
the apheterium was situated near the mouth of the Godavarl (Ancient
History of the Deccan pp. 86-88)

2. Cf. e. g. Krom's emphatic opinion in Geschiedenis, p. 53.

3. For the probability of such voyage in pre-historic times cf. Chap. II.

8 THE LAND

port was Srl-Vijaya. Others will be referred to in due course.
On the whole, therefore, we can easily visualise Malayasia
as a fairly extensive region between the continents of Asia
and Australia, enjoying peculiar advantages of trade and
commerce, both by its geographical position as well as by its
native products. From a very early period it had intercourse
with China on the north, Australia and the Pacific islands on the
south and east, and India and various islands in the Indian
ocean on the west. It was more intimately connected with
Burma and Lido-China on the north, as their inhabitants
were allied to its own.

Chapter II

THE PEOPLE

A detailed discussion o the people or peoples that inhabited
Malayasia before the advent of the Hindus belongs to the
domain of anthropology. It is beyond the scope of the present
work to dwell upon this question at length and I propose,
therefore, merely to give in broad outline the salient facts
on which there is a general agreement among scholars.

It is usual to divide the population into three main strata :
(1) The primitive races (2) the Proto-Malays and (3) the
Malays. 1

(1) The Semang and the Sakai of the Malay Peninsula
may be taken as fair specimens of the wild tribes that inhabited
the region in primitive times. The Semang Negritos belong
to the earliest stratum of population which has survived in
the peninsula. They now occupy "the wooded hills in the
north of the peninsula, in Kedah, Pcrak and northern Pahang :
with occasional communities like the Temo in Ulu Bera and
Ulu Rompiii in south Pahang". "They are dark, with woolly
hair, and flat, spreading noses, feeble chins, and lips often
everted : and sometimes they are almost pigmies in size.

But for a bark loin-cloth, they are naked They have no

form of agriculture whatever, and live upon jungle produce
and by hunting, fishing and trapping. Their distinctive weapon

I. The account of the tribes is taken from Major C. M. Enriquez 1
excellent book "Malaya an account of its People, Flora and Fauna"
(Hurst and Blackett 1927) Chs. V-VIII. The quotations are also from
this book. A detailed account of the manners and customs of the
primitive people is given by I. H. N. Evans in "Ethnology and
Archaeology of the Malay Peninsula" (Cambridge, 1927) and by R. J.
Wilkinson in "A History of the Peninsular Malays" 3rd Edition
Singapore (1923).

2

10 THE PEOPLE

is the bow and poisoned arrow. They live under over-hanging
rocks or leaf-shelter and build no houses."

The Sakai occupy the mountains of south-east Perak and
north-west Pahang. They resemble the Semang in many
respects and the two have interbred to a considerable extent.
"In colour the Sakai vary from brown to yellow, and are lighter
even than Malays. The hair is long and black, the nose finely
cut and tilted, the eyes horizontal and half-closed and the chin
sharp and pointed. They tattoo the face in certain districts
and sometimes wear a ring or a porcupine's quill through the
nose. Their distinctive weapon is the blow-pipe with which
they arc extremely skilful. As a rule they live in huts
sometimes placing them up trees at a height of 30 feet from the
ground."

(2) A number of wild tribes to be found all over Malayasia
are called Proto-Malays, as their languages are distinctly
Malay. The Jakun who occupy the south of the Malay
Peninsula may be taken as a fair specimen of this type. "They
are coppery in colour, with straight smooth black hair of
Mongolian type. The cheek-bone is high, the eyes are slightly
oblique. Though inclined to be nomadic, they usually practise
some form of agriculture, and live in fairly good houses."

The Proto-Malay type is met with all over Malayasia. The
Batak, Achinese, Gayo and Lampongs of Sumatra, the Dayaks,
Kayan, Kenyah, Dusun and Murut of Borneo, and the aborigines
of Celebes, Ternate and Tidore all belong to this type.
Some of them are cruel and ferocious. The Batak, for example,
are said to be cannibals who eat prisoners and aged relatives.
. The Kayan and Kenyah are noted for their frightful cruelty
and their women seem to have a genius for devising tortures
for captives, slaves and strangers. Others are more civilised.
The Dayaks of Borneo, although head-hunters for ritualistic
purposes, are described as 'mild in character, tractable and
hospitable when well used, grateful for kindness, industrious,
honest and simple ; neither treacherous nor cunning, and so

SUVARNADVlPA 11

truthful that the word of one of them might be safely taken
before the oath of half a dozen Malays/

(3) The Malays, who now form the predominant element of
the population of Malayasia, have been divided by Wallace
under four great heads 1 : (1) The Malays proper who inhabit
the Malay Peninsula and the coastal regions of Sumatra and
Borneo ; (2) the Javanese of Java, Madura, Bali and parts of
Lombok and Sumatra ; (3) the Bugis of Celebes ; and (4) the
Tagalas of the Philippines.

Wallace describes the Malay as follows : "In character
he is impassive. He exhibits a reserve, diffidence and even
bashfulness, which is in sonic degree attractive, and leads
observers to think that the ferocious and blood-thirsty qualities
imputed to the race arc grossly exaggerated. He is not
demonstrative. His feelings, of surprise or fear, arc never
openly manifested, and arc probably not strongly felt. He is
slow and deliberate in speech. High-class Malays are
exceedingly polite, and have all the quiet ease and dignity of
well-bred Europeans. Yet all this is compatible with a reckless
cruelty and contempt for human life, which is the dark side of
their character."

Having given a short description of the various peoples,
we may now proceed to trace their origin and affinities from
racial and linguistic points of view. Both these questions
are beset with serious difficulties and the views of different
scholars are by no means in complete agreement. We must,
therefore, content ourselves by merely quoting the view of one
eminent authority in each line of study, referring the readers,
who seek further information, to special treatises on the subject.

Mr. Roland B. Dixon has summed up as follows the racial
history of the Malay Peninsula. 9

1. Wallace Malay Archipelago, Vol. II, p. 439.

2. Roland B. Dixon The Racial History of Man (Charles
cribner's Sons, New York, London, 1923) p. 275.

12 THE PEOPLE

"The oldest stratum of population was the Negrito Palae-
Alpine which survives to-day in comparative purity only among
the Andamanese. With this was later blended a taller Negroid
people, of mixed Proto-Australoid and Proto-Negroid types,
to form the Semang. This Negroid population is still
represented among some of the hill-folk in Burma, such as the
Chin, is more strongly present in Assam and dominant in the
greater part of India. Subsequently to the formation of Semang
a strong immigration came into the Peninsula from the north,
of the normal Palae- Alpine type, of which perhaps some of
the Karen may be regarded as the last survivors. From the
fusion of these with the older Semang was derived the Sakai
and some, perhaps, of the Jakun ; the later and less modified
portions of this wave forming the older Malay groups of to-day.
Finally in recent times came the Mcnangkabau Malays from
Sumatra who have overlain the earlier group throughout the
south." The statement in the last sentence that the Malays
came from Sumatra, is, perhaps, no longer valid, as we shall see
later.

As regards language, it has been recognised for a long time
that the language of the Malays belongs to the same family
as that of Polynesia and the name Malayo-Polynesian
was applied to this group. Since then, however, Mclanesian,
Polynesian, Micronesian and Indonesian (Malay) languages
have all been proved to belong to the same family to which
the new name Austro-nesian has been applied. The discovery
of human skulls and the pre-liistoric stone implements in
Iiido-China and Malay Archipelago has demonstrated the racial
and cultural affinity between many of the races speaking these
languages. 1

There is hardly any doubt that the primitive wild tribes of
Malayasia belonged to the palaeolithic age. Discoveries of human
skulls and other pre-historic finds establish a sort of racial and

I. For pre-historic finds cf. Tijdschr. Aardr. Gen. Vol. 45 (1928)
PP- SS 1 "^; O. V. 1924 (127-133); 1926 (i74-i93) 1929 (pp. 23 ff).

SUVARNADVIPA 13

cultural affinity among large groups of them spreading over
Indo-China, Indonesia, Melanesia, and as far as Australia.
They were gradually ousted by the peoples speaking
Austro-nesian group of languages and belonging to the Neo-lithic
period. The time and nature of contact between all these
races we have no means to determine. So far as we can judge
from the analogy of similar events and the few facts that
present themselves to us, the result of the conflict seems to be,
that the original inhabitants were partly exterminated, partly
incorporated with the new-comers, and partly pushed back
to hills and jungles where some of them maintain a precarious
existence upto the present day.

Whether the conquering peoples all belonged to one race
cannot be definitely determined. This view is at least in accord
with the fact that their languages were derived from one stock,
and it is also supported by prc-historic finds, as noted before.
Be that as it may, there is hardly any doubt that they must have
lived together in close bonds of union, before they were scattered
over the islands in the Pacific ocean.

"We can thus easily postulate a common home for this
Austro-nesian group of peoples. Kern made a critical study of
the question by considering the fauna and flora of this home-
land as revealed by the common elements in the various
languages of the group. By this process of study he placed
the home-land of the Austro-nesians on the coast of Indo-
China. 1 This view is corroborated by the fact that human
skulls which are purely Indo-nesiari and prc-historic finds
which are undoubtedly Proto-Indo-nesian have been found in
Indo-China.

I. Kern V. G. Vol. VI, pp. 105-120. Kern calls it "Secundaire
stamland" (Second home), for he traces their origin further back to India,
as will appear later (V. G. Vol. XV, p. 180). R. O. Winstedt has
further supported this view by noting the occurrence of identical tales in
the Indo-nesian and Mon-Khmer languages (J. Str. Br. R. A. S. No. 76,
pp. iiQff).

14 ffiE PEOPLE

Ferrand has traced the early history of these peoples still
further back, mainly on the authority of an account preserved
by Ibn Said (13th cent.). He thinks that they originally lived
in upper Asia as neighbours of the Chinese, and being
driven by the latter, about 1000 B. C., came down to Indo-
China along the valleys of the Irawadi, Salwin, Mekong
and Menam rivers. Nearly five hundred years later they
migrated again from this region to Malay Peninsula and
various islands of the Indian Archipelago. 1 Of late, another
theory has been advanced by Van Stein Callenfels. He
infers from the remains of. their metallic objects that the
original home of the Austro-nesians lies in the region of the
Altai mountains.*

It must be remembered, however, that considering the scanty
and uncertain data on which the above conclusions are
necessarily based, they can only be regarded as provisional.
Nor should it be forgotten that the settlement of the vast region
of Malayasia could not possibly have been a simple process of
migration of a body of people from the mainland to each of the
islands. There must have been currents and cross-currents
from different quarters that swelled the tide, and we have to
postulate migrations and emigrations, not only many in number
but probably also varied in character. It will be outside the
scope of this book to pursue the ramification of this fascinating
problem any further. But there is another point of view
regarding this question which is virtually connected with the
subject-matter of this book and must be treated at some length.
Recent linguistic researches have established definite connection
between the languages of some primitive tribes of India such as
Munda and KhiTsi with Mon-Khmer and allied languages
including those of Semang and Sakai. The great philologist
Schmidt has thus established the existence of a linguistic

1. J. A. Il-XII (1918) pp. 120-123 ; I 9 I 9> P- 201.

2. T. B. G. Vol. 64 (1924), p. 604.

SUVARNADVlPA 15

family, which is now called Austro-Asiatic. 1 Schmidt
believes that 'the linguistic unity between these peoples which
is now definitely established, points to an ethnic unity among
them as well, though positive and satisfactory evidence on this
point is lacking yet. )a

"Schmidt has extended his studies even further and proposed
to connect the Austro- Asiatic family with the Austro-nesian"
to which, as stated above, the Malays belonged. Schmidt thus
seeks to establish a "larger linguistic unity between Austro-
Asiatic and Austro-nesian and calls the family thus constituted
'Austric* " Here, again, Schmidt indicates the possibility of
an ethnic unity among the peoples whose linguistic affinity
is thus definitely assured.

Schmidt thus regards the peoples of Indo-China and
Indo-nesia as belonging to the same stock as the Munda and
allied tribes 3 of Central India and the Khasis of North-
eastern India. He regards India as the original home of all
these peoples from which they gradually spread to the east
and south-east. The following passage sums up his views in
this respect.

'In the same way as I have presented here the results of
my investigations on movements of peoples who, starting

1. Die Mon-Khmer-Volker etc. (1906) pp. 35 ff,

I have used the French translation in B. E. F. E. O. Vol. VII.
(pp. 213-263), VIII (pp. 1-35). A good exposition of Schmidt's view,
so far as the linguistic aspect is concerned, is given in the introductory
chapter in ''Pre-Aryan and Pre-Dravidian in India" by Dr. P. C. Bagchi
(Calcutta University, 1929) from which I have freely quoted. (The page
marks within bracket in the text refer to this book).

2. Schmidt, op. cit. cf. specially, p. 233.

3. The Muncla group of language includes Kol, the more eastern
Kherwari with Santali, Muncjarfc Bhumij, hirhor, Kocla, Ho, Turi, Asuri,
and Korwa dialects and the western Kurku ; Kb aria ; Juang ; and the*
two mixed languages Savara and Gadaba. (Dr. P. C. Bagchi, op. cit.
p. VI.)

16 THE PEOPLE

from India towards the east, at first spread themselves over
the whole length of Indo-Chinese Peninsula, and then over
all the islands of the Pacific Ocean upto its eastern extremity,
my attention has for long been drawn to another current
which, in my opinion, also started from India, but turned
more directly towards the south and touching only the
western fringe of the Pacific Ocean proceeded, perhaps by
way of New Guinea, towards the continent of Australia' 1

Schmidt's views, like those of Ferrand and others noted
above, must be regarded as only provisional. 2 But several
other scholars have supported this view on entirely different
grounds. Among them may be mentioned the names of 8.
L6vi, J. Przyluski and J. Bloch. The relevant articles on
this subject by these eminent scholars have been published
together in English version by Dr. P. C. Bagchi. The
following summary is derived almost entirely from this book
entitled "Pro-Aryan and Pre-Dravidian in India/'

'Prof. Thomson first maintained that Munda influence can
be traced in the formation of Indian vernaculars. Recent
studies have tried to establish that this influence can be
traced further back. Prof. Przyluski has tried to explain a
certain number of words of the Sanskrit vocabulary as fairly
ancient loans from the Austro-Asiatic family of languages.
Prof. Jules Bloch has proved that the question of the Munda
substratum in Indo-Aryan can not be overlooked (pp. XI-XII)

'But the problem has other aspects too, and it has been
further proved that not only linguistic but certain cultural
and political facts also of the ancient history of India can
be explained by admitting an Austro-Asiatic element. In

1. Schmidt, op. cit, pp. 248-249. A critical summary of Schmidt's
view is given by Blagden "From Central India to Polynesia" (J. Str.
Br. R. A. S. No. 53 p. 63).

2. Recently Schmidt's view has been challenged by W. F. de Hevesy
who denies the existence of the Austro-Asiatic family of languages
(J. B. O. R. S. Vol. XX pp. 251 ff).

Slf^AKNADVlPA 1?

1923 Prof. S. L^vi tried to show that some geographical
names of ancient India like Kosala-Tosala, Auga-Vanga,
Kalinga-Trilinga, Utkala-Mekala, and Pulinda-Kulinda, ethnic
names which go by pairs, can be explained by the morphological
system of the Austro-Asiatic languages. In 1926 Przyluski
tried to explain the name of an ancient people of the Punjab,
the Udumbara, in a similar way and affiliate it to the Austro-
Asiatic group. In another article, the same scholar discussed
some names of Indian towns in the geography of Ptolemy and
tried to explain them by Austro-Asiatic forms (pp. XII-XIII).

'In another scries of articles, Prof. Przyluski is trying
to prove a certain number of Indian myths by the Austro-
Asiatic influence. He studied the Mahabharata story of
Matsyagaiidha and some legends of the nagl, in Indian literature,
compared them with similar tales in the Austro-Asiatic domain,
and concluded that these stories and legends were conceived
in societies living near the sea, societies of which the civilisation
and social organisation were different from those of the
neighbouring peoples, the Chinese and the Indo-Aryans/
(p. XIII)

The bearing of all these interesting investigations on the
question under discussion has thus been admirably expressed
by S. L<$vi.

"We must know whether the legends, the religion and
philosophical thought of India do not owe anything to this past.
India has been too exclusively examined from the Indo-European
standpoint. It ought to be remembered that India is a great
maritime country, open to a vast sea forming so exactly its
Mediterranean, a Mediterranean of proportionate dimensions
which for a long time was believed to be closed in the south.
The movement which carried the Indian colonisation towards
the Far East, probably about the beginning of the Christian Era,
was far from inaugurating a new route, as Columbus did in
navigating towards the West. Adventurers, traffickers and
missionaries profited by the technical progress of navigation,
3

IS THE PEOPLE

and followed under the best condition of comfort and efficiency
the way traced from time immemorial by the mariners of
another race whom the Aryan or Aryanised India despised
as savages." (pp. 125-6)

In other words, the cumulative effect of all these researches
is to push back the first phase of Indian colonisation in the
Far East to a time prior to the Aryan or Dravidian conquest
of India. It will not perhaps be rash to imagine that, that
colonisation was, at least partly, the result of Dravidian and
Aryan settlements in India which dislodged the primitive
peoples and forced them to find a new home across the seas. 1

It may be noted, however, that conclusion of an almost
opposite character has been arrived at by certain scholars.
Krom, for example, believes that the Indo-nesians had colonised
India in primitive times, and the later Aryan colonisation of the
Far East was merely the reverse of that process. 2 This is in
flagrant contradiction to the views of Schmidt and Lvi, and
seems to be based mainly on the theory of Mr. J. Hornell. In
his Memoir on u thc Origins and Ethnological significance of the
Indian Boat Designs" Mr. Hornell "admits a strong Polynesian
influence on the Prc-Dravidian population of the southern coast
of India. He thinks that a wave of Malayan immigration
must have arrived later, after the entrance of the Dravidians on
the scene, and it was a Malayan people who brought from the
Malay Archipelago the cultivation of the Coco-palm." (p. XVII)

Two other observations by different scholars probably lend
colour to this view. In the first place, Prof. Das Gupta "has
brought out the striking analogy between some sedentary games
of India (specially of the Central Provinces, Bengal, Bihar,
Orissa and the Punjab) and those of Sumatra." (p. XVII)

1. Kern also held similar view; cf. V. G., Vol. XV, p. 180.

He held that they came from India, their ultimate home being
Central Asia. This is not in conflict with his original view that the home-
land of the Malayo- Polynesians was the eastern coast of Further India,

2. Krom Geschiedenis, p. 38,

SUVARNADVlPA 19

Secondly, we have the following remarks made by
Dr. J. H. Hutton with reference to some pre-historic monoliths
of Dimapur near Manipur. "The method of erection of these
monoliths is very important, as it throws some light on the
erection of pre-historic monoliths in other parts of the world.
Assam and Madagascar are the only remaining parts of the
world where the practice of erecting rough stones still

continues The origin of this cult is uncertain, but it appears

that it is to be mainly imputed to the Mon-Khmer intrusion
from the east." In his opinion these monoliths take the
forms of Ufigam and yoni, and he thinks that they possibly
originated in Indo-nesia. (pp. XVII-XVIII)

In all these cases the similarity that undoubtedly exists may
be explained by supposing either that India derived the practices
from Indo-ncsia or that Indo-nesia derived them from India.
The recent discoveries at Mohenjo-daro, 1 however, prove the
existence of the cult of Linga and Yoni in the Indus Valley
at least in the beginning of the third mUlenium B. C. Thus the
migration of the cult towards the cast seems most probable.
Considering the whole course of Indian history it seems more
probable that the migration of the people and ideas was
generally from India towards the east, and no tangible evidence
has yet been obtained that the process was just the reverse.
On the whole, therefore, the views of Schmidt and Sylvain Lvi
appear far more reasonable than those of Horncll and Hutton.

In view of a possible pre-historic connection between India
and Malayasia, it is necessary to say something on the word
Malaya which has given the name to the dominant race and
the dominant language in Malayasia. It is a well-known fact
that an Indian tribe called Malava ( var. Malava ) or
Malaya (var. Malaya) is known from very ancient times. The
common form, of course, is Malava, but the form 'Malaya'
also occurs on their coins. In a discussion of these coins
Mr. Douglas maintained that Malaya is the older form of the

j. Marshall The Indus Civilisation, pp. 58 ff.

20 THE PEOPLE

tribal name. His conclusion rests chiefly on the Greek form
of the name. "The Greeks" says he "called them the Malloi.
Had the name Malava been in common use at that time, I feel
sure that the Greeks would have transliterated the word as the
Malluoi. This seems to me to show that the commoner form
of the tribal name at the time of the Greek invasions was
Malaya." 1

Whatever we may think of this view, there is no doubt that
both the forms were in common use. The form Malaya occurs
in Mudrfi-Raksasa 9 and Malaya in an inscription found at
Nasik. 8 The interchange of y and v is also attested by the
alternative names of a Satavahana king as Pulumayi and
Pulumavi.*

The antiquity of the Mftlava Malaya tribe is proved by
Panini's reference to it as a clan living by the profession of arms
(ftyudhajivin). There is no doubt also that the Malavas were
widely spread in different parts of India. Alexander met them
in the Punjab, but their settlement in Rajputanfi is proved by
the discovery of thousands of their coins at Nagar in Jaypur
State 5 and the reference in the Nasik inscription mentioned
above.

The Indian literature also makes frequent references to the
Malavas. The Mahabharata knows of various Malava tribes
in the west, north and south. 6 The Eamayana and Matsya-
purana include the Malavas among the eastern tribes 7 while
various other texts refer to them as a people in one or other
parts of India.

i. J. A. S. B., N. S., Vol. XIX (1924). Numismatic supplement
No. XXXVII, p. 43.

2. Canto I, verse 20.

3. Rapson Catalogue of the Coins of the Andhras etc , p. LVII.

4. Ibid, fn. I.

5. V. Smith Catalogue of Coins in the Indian Museum, pp. 161 ff.
I7off.

6. cf. Mahabharata 11-32, III-si, VI-g, 87, 106.

7. RamSyana IV-4O, V-22. Matsyapurana Ch. 1 14 V. 34.

SUVAKNADVlPA 21

The wide spread of the Malavas may also be guessed from
Indian dialects or toponyms connected with them. Mr. Grierson
has referred to a Malavia dialect extending from Perozcpur to
Bhatinda in the Punjab, and we have also the well-known
Malayalam language of southern India. The well-known Indian
provinces of Malava in northern India and Malaya-bar or
Malabar in southern India still testify to the influence of that
tribal name. The Malaya mountain, the source of Sandalwood,
is referred to in Purftnas and other ancient literature as one
of the seven Kulaparratas or boundary mountains in India.
Lastly the famous era, beginning in 58 B. C., has been associated
with the Malavas from the earliest times.

The Buddhist literature also refers to Malaya country. The
famous Lankavatara Sutra is said to have been delivered by
the Buddha in the city of Lanka on the summit of the
Malaya mountain on the border of the sea. The Buddhist
reference to Malaya has been regarded by some as purely
imaginary but the existence of a Malaya mountain in Ceylon
is proved by Ptolemy and MahSvarnsa. That of a Malaya
country and a Malaya mountain in the south of India also rests
on definite grounds. The great Buddhist Vajrabodhi who came
to China in A. D. 719 is described as a native of the Malaya
country adjoining mount Potalaka, his father being preceptor
of the king of Kancl. Hiuen Tsang places the country of
Malakuta, 3000 li south of KaSci, and refers to its mountains
Malaya and Potalaka. Alberuni also places Malaya 40 farsakhs
(about 160 miles) south of KaSci. Thus we have both a
Malaya country and a Malaya mountain in the extreme south of
the Indian Peninsula. 1 There is no doubt that this name is

i. S. L6vi in J. A. CCVI, pp, 65 ff.
Walters On Yuan Chwang, Vol. II, pp. 229-231.
Ptolemy (M'c. Cr indie), p. 249.

Geiger Mahavarhsa, p. 60. Sachau- Alberuni, Vol. I,, p. 200;
cf. also B. E. F. E. Q. Vol. IV, p. 359.

22 THE PEOPLE

preserved in modern Malabar which the Arab Geographers
call either Malaya-bar or simply Malay. 1

While the Malava and Malaya can thus be traced as tribal
or geographical names all over India, upto its north-western,
eastern and southern extremities, the spread of this name across
the sea is no less conspicuous. On the east, the famous
Malays of Malayasia, the place names Malay and Malacca in
the Peninsula, Malayu in Sumatra, 8 Mala or Malava for Laos
and perhaps even Molucca islands in the eastern extremity of
the archipelago, and on the west Maldives (Maladvlpa), and
Malay the ancient name of Madagascar 8 testify to the spread
of the name in Indo-China and along the whole range of the
southern ocean.

Now Ferrand has- drawn our attention to the fact that the
Indo-nesian language, mixed with Sanskrit vocabulary, was
current in Madagascar. Combining this fact with other
traditional evidences he has come to the conclusion that
Madagascar was colonised in ancient times by Hinduiscd
Indo-nesians.* It is not necessary for the present to discuss
the further implications of this theory as enunciated by
Ferrand, and I must rest content by pointing out the bearing
of the account of Malava Malaya, as given above, on this as
well as several other theories.

Now the theories of Schmidt, Lvi, Homell and Hutton
(as modified by the discoveries at Mohenjo-daro) referred to
above, all presuppose, or are at least satisfactorily explained by

1. Ferrand Textes, p. 38 fn. 5, pp. 204, 340.

2. "The name Malayu is very common in Sumatra. There are a
mountain and a river of that name ; there are five villages called Malayu
and a tribe of that name." T'oung Pao, series II, Vol. II, p. 115.

3. Ferrand Textes, pp. 389, 396,

4. J. A. II-XI1 (1918) pp. 121 ff.

J. A. 1I-XIV (1919), pp 62 ff., pp. 201 ff. Krom, however, thinks
that the Indo-nesian people colonised Madagascar before they came into
contact with the Hindus. He attributes the Indian element in the
language of Madagascar to later intercourse (Geschiedenis, pp. 38-9).

SUVABNADVIPA 23

a stream of migration of Indian peoples towards the east and
south-east, to Assam, Burma, Lido-China and Malay Archipelago,
both by land and sea. The migrations of the Malava tribe, so
far as we can judge from the occurrence of geographical names,
follow, as we have seen above, exactly this course, as we can
trace them from the Punjab to Assam on the one side and to
Malabar on the other.

From Malabar we can trace the name in the east through
Ceylon (Malava mountain in Lanka) and Sumatra (Malayu) to
Malay Peninsula, perhaps even to Moluccos. On the west we
can trace it from Malabar to Maldives and Madagascar. It is,
no doubt, more reasonable to explain the linguistic facts
observed by Ferrand in Madagascar by supposing a common
centre in India, from which the streams of colonisation
proceeded both towards the east as well as towards the west,
than by supposing that Hindu colonists first settled in Malayasia
and then turned back to colonise Madagascar. The people of
Madagascar have a tradition that their ancestors came from
Mangalore. 1 This place is located by Ferrand in the south
of Malaya Peninsula, but it should not be forgotten that
Mangalore is the name of a well-known place in Malabar Coast
and is referred to by Arab writers as one of the most celebrated
towns of Malabar. 2

I do not wish to be dogmatic and do not altogether reject
the views of Ferrand. But the known facts about the Malava-
Malaya tribe in India seem to me to offer quite a satisfactory
explanation not only of the problem of colonisation of
Madagascar but also of the racial, linguistic and cultural
phenomena observed by Schmidt, Hutton and Hornell. It is
interesting to note in this connection that various words
inscribed on the coins of the Malavas which have been
provisionally explained as names of tribal leaders, are non-
Sanskritic. Thus we have Bhapafnyana, Majupa, Mapojaya,

1. J.A. Il-XiV (1919), p. 64.

2. Ferrand Textes, p. 204.

24 THE PEOPLE

Mapaya, MagajaSa, Magaja, Magojava, Gojara, MaSapa, Mapaka,
Pacha, Magacha, Gajava, Jamaka, Jamapaya, Paya. Whatever
the language may be, it shows one peculiar Austro-nesian
characteristic, which has been traced by Sylvain L6vi in certain
geographical nomenclatures of ancient India, viz., the existence
of a certain number of words constituting almost identical
pairs, differentiated between themselves only by the nature of
their initial consonants. Among the terms on the Malava
coins noted above we may easily select two series of this
type.

1. Paya, Ma-paya, Ja-ma-paya.

2. Gajava, Magojava.

The tribe Malava-Malaya has played great part in the history
of India. Its name is associated with an old language, the
most ancient era and two important provinces of India. The
Malaya tribe has played an equally dominant part in the Indian
seas. It has been the dominant race in the Indian Archipelago
and its name and language are spread over a wide region
extending almost from Australia to African coast. I have
shown above enough grounds for the presumption and it must
not be regarded as anything more than a mere presumption that
the Malava of India may be looked upon as the parent stock
of the Malays who played such a leading part in
Malayasia. It may be interesting to note here that Przyluski
has shown from linguistic data that Udumbara or Odumbara
was the name of an Austro- Asiatic people of the Punjab and
also designated their country. 1 The Odumbaras were
neighbours of the Malavas and the coins of the two peoples
belong approximately to the same period. 3 Thus, prima
facie there is nothing inherently objectionable in the
assumption that the Malava-Malaya may also be the name of
an Austro-Asiatic people.

I. P. C. Bagchi Pre- Aryan and Pre-Dravidian in India,
pp. 149-160.

a. V. A. Smith op. cit, pp. 160 ff., p. 166.

SUVABNADVIPA 25

If the presumption be held a reasonable one, we may refer
to Ptolemy's account as an evidence that the Malays had spread
to the Far East before his time. Ptolemy refers to mountain
Malaia in Ceylon and cape Malcou Kolon in the Golden
Khersonesus. Regarding the latter, M'c. Crindlc remarks as
follows : "Mr. Crawford has noticed the singular circumstance
that this name is pure Javanese signifying "Western Malays."
Whether the name Malay can be so old is a question : but I
observe that in Bastian's Siamese extracts the foundation of
Takkhala is ascribed to the Malays." Thus indications are not
wanting that various branches of the Malay tribe had settled in
Malayasia before the second century A. D. There is a general
tradition among the Malays of Minankabau that their parent
stock came from India and settled in the western coast of
Sumatra. 1

Thus while it is impossible to arrive at any definite conclusion
in this matter, pre-historic migrations of Austro-nesian tribes
from India to Malayasia appear very probable, and if this view
be correct, we may regard the Indian Malaya-Malava people as
one of these tribes. 8

1. Cf. Ferrand in J. A. il-XII, p, 77.

2. Although I have arrived at the theory of the Indian origin of
the Malays quite independently, it is only fair to note that Gerini
made the same suggestion in his 'Researches on Ptolemy's Geography
of Eastern Asia' (pp. 101 ff). I have not referred to his views as they are
mixed up with a great deal of extraneous matters and some amount
of fanciful etymological derivations. So far as I can see, his views
rest primarily on the resemblances of geographical names.

Gerini explains Maleou-Kolon as referring to two prominent Indian
tribal names- Malay and Kola (Cola) of south India, and he traces many
other south Indian tribal names in the Malay Peninsula (cf. pp. 102-3).
He holds that Malacca was either a modification of Malaykolam or
Malayaka (meaning the country of the Malays) or identical with Malaka,
the name of a southern Indian tribe mentioned in the Mahabharata
(p. 105). I have tentatively adopted this view in respect of both Malacca
and Moluccos, With the exception of this and the statement that

4

Chapter III.
PRE-HINDU CIVILISATION IN MALAYASIA

The Austro-nesian races must have occupied Malayasia
for a pretty long time before they came into contact with the
Hindus and imbibed their civilisation. In order, therefore,
to estimate properly the influence of this new element we
must have some idea of the civilisation which these indigenous
races possessed before the arrival of the Hindus.

Unfortunately the materials for such a study are very
scanty. The actual remains left by these races do not difier
very much from what is usually termed as 'pre-historic' and
met with in various other countries. We may start with a brief
account of them, beginning from Java 1 , where a more
systematic study has been made of these materials than in
other places.

Laos is referred to as Malava (p. n?) I have not borrowed from Gerini
any views or statements recorded in this chapter.

I must also state that it is usually held, though without sufficient
reason, that the term Malaya as designating the Malay Peninsula came
into use only in the seventeenth century A.D. ( J. Mai. Br. R. A. S. 1930,
p. 85), presumably in consequence of the migration of a large number
of Malays from Sumatra, in the fifteenth century A. D. ( B. C. A.
Iv I Q09, p. 184 ) Blagden refers to I-tsing's Malayu and infers
that Malaya country par excellence* was in Central Sumatra, a fact
agreeing very well with native Malay tradition on the subject which derives
the origin of many of the Malays of the Peninsula from the old Central
Sumatran state of Minangkabau ( J. Str. Br. R. A. S. No. 32 pp. 211-
213). This view admits the possibility of the name Malaya being
applied to the Peninsula at an earlier date. (cf. Crawford Dictionary
pp. 250-252).

i. The following sketch of the pre-historic remains of Java is based
on (a) Krom Kunst Vol. i. pp. 121-26 ; (b) Krom-Geschiedenis, pp. 42-45.

SUVAKNADVlPA 27

The pre-historic archaeological remains in Java may be
classified as follows :

I. Palaeolithic and neolithic implements such as axe-head
chisel, pole and various weapons.

II. Megalithic monuments for burying the dead. These
are of three kinds.

(a) Rock-cut caves, either rude or well-shaped.

(b) The stone coffins, consisting of a long and deep
rectangular chest with a cover curved like an arch on the outer
side. Both the chest and the cover have thick walls, which
are rough outside (probably due to long exposure) but polished
within. The dead body was introduced through a hole at one
end which was then closed by a flat stone. The hole was
sometimes surrounded by decorative designs. The chest was
also sometimes painted with straight and curved lines and
primitive pictures of men and animals (tiger, birds etc).

(c) The dolmens which were constructed by placing one
big long stone over several other stones set upright in the
ground.

Various articles arc found in these graves, such as beads,
neolithic stone implements, copper rings for arms and legs,
iron lance-point or short swords. Bronze articles are not,
however, found in these tombs, though sporadic finds of chisels
and axe-heads, made of bronze, by their likeness with neolithic
implements of the same kind, indicate a knowledge of bronze
before the period of later Hindu colonisation.

III. In some places in western Java are found rough
scratchings under human figures, engraved on rock. These
scratchings have been regarded as pre-Hindu Inscriptions.

IV. In certain places are found rows of pointed stones,
occasionally along with very rude and almost monstrous human
figures in stone, known as Pajajaran or Polynesian images.

Although all these monuments are properly ascribed to the
people or peoples who settled in Java before the Hindu

28 PBE-HINDU CIVILISATION IN MALAYASIA

colonisation, it should not be imagined that they are all to be
dated before the introduction of that civilisation. They continued
to be built throughout the Hindu period, particularly in those
regions where the Hindu influence was comparatively weak.
It may not be without interest to note that even to-day the
megalithic tombs of the types II (b) and II (c) described above
are in use among the people of Sumba. On the whole,
therefore, while the monuments described above may justly be
regarded as characteristic of the pre-Hindu settlers, they
cannot all be described as remains of the pre-Hindu period.

Attempt has been made to classify the pre-Hindti settlers
in Java into distinct groups on the basis of the different types
of monuments described above. But as sometimes the
different classes of monuments arc found together in the same
locality, such attempts cannot lead to any satisfactory
conclusion.

The pre-historic remains of Sumatra mostly belong to the
same classes as those of Java and need not be referred to in
detail. We meet with megalithic dolmens and menhirs
as well as rock-scratchings or inscriptions with human figures.
In respect of this last alone Sumarta offers some striking
peculiarities as we occasionally come across a unique type of
human figures in stone. These are characterised by large eyes,
broad jaws and thick lips. They have got a head-dress of the
form of a cap, and a bag hanging from the shoulder. Their
wrists and legs are covered and they are represented as either
riding on elephants or engaged in. fighting with them. The
rectangular back-pieces of some of these figures show that
they were used to support a structure. 1

I. Krom-Geschiedenis, p. 44 ; O. V. 1922, pp. 31-37- It is not
possible to prove definitely that these figures are really pre-historic
and not influenced by the later Hindu civilisation. From the
evidence at our disposal it would, perhaps, be safer to regard these
figures as belonging to the megaiithic period of culture.

SUVABNADVlPA 29

The pre-historic remains of the Malay Peninsula have not
yet been studied to the same extent as those of Java and
Sumatra. But enough has been discovered to show their
general nature. 1 A number of caves containing palaeolithic
implements, some of them of Sumatran types, have come
to light. But the great majority of the stone implements
hitherto discovered are neolithic. Most of them are axe or
adze heads, and there is a total absence of knives, spear-heads
or arrow-heads. Probably bamboo and hardwoods were used for
these purposes. Among implements of rare type may be
mentioned a hand-axe and quoit-shaped objects figured in plates
XXXVI- VII of Evan's book. Rough cord-marked pottery,
in imitation of ware made in a basket, and often with diamond-
shaped reticulations, has also been found with the stone
implements.

Certain tools of bronze or copper have been discovered, but
they are distinctly rare, and it is doubtful whether there was any
bronze age in the Peninsula. Ancient iron tools are also
occasionally discovered, and we have some specimens of graves
built of large granite slabs and 'cists' closely resembling the
dolmen. On the whole the remains afford us the picture of a
very primitive civilisation.

Mention may also be made of what are popularly known as
Siamese mines. These are circular pits, sometimes more than
hundred feet deep and about two feet apart, and connected with
one another by galleries at the base.

Primitive stone implements have been obtained from various
islands in the archipelago such as Borneo, Celebes, Timor, and

i. The account of the pre-historic remains of Malay Peninsula
is based mainly on "Papers on the Ethnology and Archaeology of the
Malay Peninsula" by Ivor H. N. Evans M. A. (Cambridge, 1927). For
a detailed account of the neolithic and palaeolithic implements, cf.
R. O. Winstedt 'Pre-history of Malaya', in J. Mai. Br. R. A. S. 1932
pp. I ff,

30 PRE-HINDU CIVILISATION EST MALAYASIA

Moluccas. These afford us the picture of a primitive people
such as we meet with in other parts of the world before the
dawn of civilisation.

On the whole the actual archaeological finds in different parts
of Malayasia lead to the conclusion that at the time of the first
contact with the Hindus the people of Malayasia were in a
primitive state of civilisation, and that in some regions
they had not yet emerged from the state of barbarism. But
the very fact that they had spread over so many different islands
in the Archipelago forces us to admit that some of them had
developed a high degree of skill in navigating the open sea, and
it is only reasonable to hold that a people who could do this
must have passed beyond the elementary stage of civilisation.

Kern has made a serious attempt to form some idea of this
civilisation. By a comparative study of the different Indo-nesian
languages he has hit upon a number of roots or words common
among them all. These may be reasonably regarded as
having been in use when the Austro-nesian races lived together
in Indo-China. With the help of these words, as well as by a
study of those islanders who have been least affected by foreign
intrusions, Kern has drawn a picture of the life led by the
common ancestors of the peoples of Malayasia. It cannot,
of course, be maintained that the civilisation which they had
developed in Indo-China remained unaffected after they had
moved to the various islands, for, according to local
circumstances, it must have made further progress, or even
received a set-back. But the picture of civilisation drawn by
Kern may be regarded as a general background of our study.
Without going into unnecessary and controversial details,
we may give the following sketch of this civilisation on
the authority of Kern.

The Austro-nesians cultivated banana, sugarcane, cucumber
etc. and were also acquainted with cocoanut and bamboo.
Whether the cultivation of rice was known to the whole group
is doubtful, but the section which peopled Malayasia

SUVAENADVlPA 31

certainly acquainted with it Among other articles of food
may be mentioned lobster, prawn and turtle, which they got
from the sea. They tended buffaloes, pigs, and probably also
cows, which were employed for cultivation and supplied them
with meat and milk. Hunting and fishing were very popular
with them, and they were acquainted with iron weapons.
Their clothes were made of barks of trees and they knew
the art of weaving. They built houses of bamboo, wood
and rattan.

About their intellectual attainments it may be mentioned
that they could count upto a thousand and possessed an
elementary knowledge of astronomy, indispensable for navigation
in open sea. Their religious beliefs, like those of all primitive
tribes, may be characterised as Animistic. Everything in nature
which excited their curiosity or apprehensions and before which
they felt themselves powerless to act, such as storm, thunder,
earthquake, conflagration etc., were conceived as work of spirits
who must be satisfied with proper worship. They also
regarded trees, rocks, rivers and other natural objects as abodes
of spirits. But the most important classes of spirits were those
of the ancestors who were regularly worshipped and were
supposed to exercise great influence on the lives of their
descendants.

The dead bodies were either thrown to the sea, or left in the
forests, to be devoured by wild animals, or to undergo a natural
decomposition. For it is only when the bones alone were left
could the soul of the dead leave the body and go back to its
proper realm, there to enjoy an eternal life very much in the
same way as on the earth below 1 .

It may be noted that the picture drawn above is in full
accord with what we know of the primitive tribes in India. It

i. The summary is taken from "Fruin-Mees", pp. 5-6. For the
linguistic discussion on which it is based, Cf. V. G., Vol. VI, pp. 107-120.
As to navigation and the knowledge of astronomy Cf. V. G., Vol. VI.,
p. 24. For general account cf. V. G., Vol. XV, pp. 180-81.

32 FEE-HINDU CIVILISATION IN MALAYASIA

may also be reasonably held that the Indo-nesian settlers in
Java and other islands, although mainly clinging to the old
habits, introduced certain modifications therein. The monuments,
described above, undoubtedly show that their method of disposing
of the dead bodies had undergone a great change, and that they
had made remarkable improvements in the art of stone-
cutting. 1 It may also be presumed that the people of Java
made further notable progress. It appears that the Javanese
had developed various industries and excelled in making
various articles of iron, bronze, copper, silver, gold, ivory,
tortoise-shell, and horn of rhinoceros. It is to be remembered
that tortoise and elephant are not to be found in Java and that
gold, too, was found there only in small quantities. The work
in ivory, tortoise-shell and gold, therefore, indicates active
trade-relations with foreign countries from which they must
have been imported. The rich fertility of the soil must also
have made Java an emporium of grain. It is perhaps for this
very reason that the Hindu traders who probably replenished
their store of food from this fertile country on their way to
China named the island 'Yava-dvlpa' or 'Island of Barley', a
name which completely superseded in later times the indigenous
name Nusa Kendeng. Thus we must hold that on the whole
the Javanese possessed a high degree of civilisation. As to
their religious beliefs and practices, the worship of spirits and
ancestors seems to have played a dominant part in their every-
day life. They built statues of these ancestors either of wood
or stone, and also suitable temples to house them. A class of
men called Zaman was believed to have been possessed of a
peculiar faculty which enabled them to serve as a means of
communication with the spirits of the ancestors. By suitable
ceremonies in which dance, music, and burning of incense

I. Fruin-Mees believes that some of the graves described above
may belong to the primitive races who settled in Java before the
immigration of the Indo-nesians (p. 7). This may be true, and in that
case the Indo-nesian colonists in Java may be regarded as having learnt
the art from these primitive peoples of Java.

SUVARNADVlPA 33

formed the chief part, the Zamans became the medium through
whose mouth the spirits of the ancestors gave their blessings
to, and directed the undertakings of, their descendants. The
Zamans also were, therefore, held in great veneration.

The Javanese also made distinct progress in astronomy.
They calculated a month of 30 days according to the phases of
the moon, and their year consisted of 12 months. The year
was again divided into two parts, ten months of work and two
of rest. Five days, or rather nights, formed a unit, and two
such units formed the week, of which there were thirty in the
working period of ten months or 300 days.

While admitting that the people of Java had attained to a
much higher grade of civilisation than their neighbours, it is
difficult to accept the highly exaggerated picture which is
sometimes drawn of it. We may, for example, refer to the
views of the great scholar Brandes who held that the pre-Hindu
Javanese had the knowledge of the following. 1

1. The Wajang, a kind of shadow-play well-known in
modern Java.

2. Gamelan, modern Javanese music accompanying
Wajang.

3. Metre.

4. The art of weaving Batik cloth.

5. The metal industry.

6. Monetary system.

7. Sea-voyage.

8. Astronomy.

9. Cultivation by means of artificial irrigation.
10. State-organisation of a high order.

A knowledge of some of these, for example, nos. 5, 7, and
8, may be accepted without discussion and has already been
referred to. The others are, however, open to serious objection,

i. T. B. G., Vol. 32 (iSCg), pp. 122 ff.
5

34 PBE-HINDU CIVILISATION IN MALAYASIA

and Brandes' views in respect of them have been adversely
criticised by eminent scholars. 1

As regards Wajang, I have discussed the question in some
details in an Appendix to Bk. V., Chap. III. It is admitted by
all that this has never been known to any other Indo-nesian
tribe outside Java (except where it was imported in later
times from Java), that we first come across it in Java when the
Hindu colonists were established there for centuries, that
similar play called Chaya-nataka was undoubtedly known to
the Hindus, and that the plot of the earliest type of Wajang
in Java is invariably derived from the Hindu epics. Against
this it is pointed out that the technical terms in Wajang
are Javanese and not Sanskrit, and that Wajang is very
closely connected with the ancestor-worship of the Javanese.
But it is to be remembered that when a people adopt a foreign
custom, or import a foreign article, they not only sometimes
give them their own names but also adapt them to their own
peculiar needs. Although Wajang is closely associated with
ancestor-worship in Java to-day, there is nothing to show that
it always has been so. It stands to reason that when it secured
wide popularity in Java, it came to form an essential element
in the ancestor-worship which played such a dominant part in
the life of Javanese people. It may be urged in favour of
this view that although ancestor-worship is a characteristic
feature of all or most Indo-nesian tribes, Wajang has never
been known to form a part of it outside Java.

Gamelan, which is essentially bound up with Wajang may,
on similar grounds, be regarded as Javanese adaptation of an
Indian original. As to Batik the researches of Rouffaer and
Juynboll * have established the facts that the industry is not
known to any other island outside Java (except where it was
directly imported from Java) and that the first reference to

1. The observations that follow are mainly based on Krom
Geschiedenis, pp. 45- 52.

2. De Batik-kunst in Ned.- Indie en haar geschiedenis (1914-)

SUVAKNADVlPA 35

the industry in Java belongs to a very late period, while from
a much earlier period India has been a well-known centre for
the mass-production and wholesale export of the commodity.
Here, again, the only argument for a Javanese origin seems to
be that the technical terms are Javanese. As Krom has
rightly pointed out, even to-day the Javanese give indigenous
names to new articles imported from America and Europe,
and hence no weight should be attached to arguments based on
indigenous character of the name.

As to Javanese metric and system of coinage, Brandes
himself puts forward the claim with a great deal of hesitation,
and Krom has pointed out that there is absolutely no evidence
in support of it. What Brandes claims as Javanese metre, and
Javanese coins proper, make their first appearance after the
Indian metre and Indian coins had remained in use for
centuries. According to Brandes, these undoubtedly later
phenomena are developments of old pre-Hindu state of things.
We have, however, as yet had no evidence that there was any
metre or coin in the pre-Hindu period. Besides, even if there
were any, we are to suppose, that they absolutely went out of
use during the many centuries of Hindu influence, only
suddenly to come to light after an obscurity of over thousand
years. Nothing but the very strongest positive evidence would
induce us to believe in such an explanation, and such evidence
is lacking for the present. l

As regards the last two points, cultivation by means of
irrigation, and developed political organisation, Brandes bases
his conclusions on the use of indigenous technical terms. As
has been shown above, this is by no means a satisfactory
evidence. On the other hand, the irrigation system was not
unknown to the other Indo-nesian tribes and might well have
developed independently in Java even prior to the Hindu

I. Berg points out the close connection between the Javanese
metrics and Javanese phonetics, and regards it as an evidence of the high
antiquity of Javanese metre (Berg-Inleiding, pp. 67-69).

36 PRE-HINDU CIVILISATION IN MALAYASIA

colonisation. As regards the state-organisation, we may well
conceive that there was a certain political system, however
rudimentary, though it is difficult to estimate the nature and
degree of the organisation, as data for such estimate are
lacking.

Thus, of the ten points of Brandes, by which he tried to
sum up the civilisation of the Javanese before they came
in contact with the Hindus, Wajang, Gamelaii and Batik
may be dismissed as improbable ; two others, metrics and
monetary system, are most unlikely ; while two others, irrigation
and highly developed state-organisation, are, at least, doubtful.
The remaining three, viz., metal industry, sea-voyage, and
elementary knowledge of astronomy, may alone be accepted as
undoubtedly true.

Chapter IV.
SUVARNADVIPA

SuvarnabhGmi (gold-land) and Suvarnadvipa (gold-island),
as names of over-sea countries, were familiar to the Indians
from a very early period. They occur in old popular stories
such as have been preserved in the Jatakas, Kathakoa and
BrhatkathS, as well as in more serious literary works, mainly
Buddhist.

Thus, according to a Jataka story, 1 prince Mahiijanaka
sailed with some merchants in a ship bound for Suvarnabhumi,
in order to get great riches there. Another Jataka story 8
refers to a sea-voyage from Bharukaccha to Suvarnabhumi.
The same journey is described in great detail in the Supparaka-
Jataka. 8

The original Byhatkatha is lost, but its stories have been
partially preserved in the KathSsarit-sagara, Brhatkatha-
maSjarl and Brhatkatha-61oka-samgraha. The Byhatkatha-lloka-
samgraha gives us the story of Sanudasa, who sails for
SuvarnabhGmi with a gang of adventurers, and undertakes a
perilous journey by land after crossing the sea.* The
Kathasarit-sagara contains a few more stories of the same type.
First, we have the adventurous story of the great merchant

1. Jataka Vol. VI. p. 22.

2. Jataka Vol. III. p, 124.

3. Jataka Vol. IV. p. 86. Jatakamala No. XIV. Both give
practically the same details of the journey, but the latter adds that
the journey was undertaken at the instance of the merchants of
Suvagnabhumi who had come to Bharukaccha, It may be inferred that
Suvapnabhumi was the destination of the voyage.

4. Lacote Essai sur Gugatfhya et la Brhatkatha (pp. I75 ff )
English translation by Tabard, p. 131. See below, pp. 58 ff.

38 SUVAENADVlPA

SamudraSdra, who sailed in a ship for Suvarnadvipa, for
purposes of trade, and ultimately reached its chief city
Kalasapura. 1 Another merchant, Eudra, was shipwrecked on
his way back from Suvarnadvipa. 9 It also relates the story
of ISvaravarma who went to Svarnadvlpa for the purpose of
trade. 8 We have also references to trading voyage to
Suvarnadvipa in the romantic story of YaSahketu.* There is,
again, the story of a princess of Kataha being shipwrecked near
Suvarnadvipa, on her way to India. 5

The KathakoSa relates the story of Nagadatta. Being
anxious to go to a foreign land, in order to acquire wealth,
he went on a sea-voyage with five hundred ships. His ships fell
into the hollow of the snake-circled mountain and were rescued
by the efforts of Sundara, king of Suvarnadvipa, who came
to know of the danger of Nagadatta from a letter fastened to
the foot of a parrot 6

Among the more serious works containing references to
SuvarnabhQmi, we may refer, in the first place, to Kautilya's
ArthaSastra (Book II, Chap. XI) which refers to Aguru (aloe)
of Suvarnabhumi. The following passage in MilindapaSha
makes an interesting reference to a few centres of the over-
sea trade of India : "As a ship-owner, who has become wealthy
by constantly levying freight in some sea-port town, will be

able to traverse the high seas and go to Takkola or

Clna or Suvannabhumi or any other place where ships do

congregate." 7

1. Kathasarit-sagara (Taranga 54, verses 97 ff.) (Bombay edition
of 1867, p. 276).

2. Ibid, Tarahga 54, vv. 86 ff.

3. Ibid, Taranga 57, vv. 72 ff. (p. 297).

4. Ibid, Taranga 86, vv. 33, 62.

5. Ibid, Taranga 123, v. no.

6. KathSkosa Tr. by Tawney pp. 28-29.

7. Milindapafiha, p, 359, Translated in S.B.E. Vol. XXXVI,
p. 269.

SUVAKNADVIPA 39

The Niddesa, a canonical work, also refers to sea-voyage to
Suvarnabhflmi and various other countries. 1 The Mahakarma-
Vibhanga illustrates des&ntara-vipaka (calamities of foreign
travel) by reference to merchants who sailed to Suvarnabhumi
from Mahakosali and Tamralipti. 8

We may next refer to the Ceylonese Chronicle Mahavamsa
which describes the missionary activities of Thera Uttara and
Thera Sona in Suvarnabhtlmi. 3 The Mahakarma-Vibhanga
attributes the conversion of Suvarnabhumi to Gavampati.
The voyage of Gavampati to Suvarnabhumi is also related in
the Sasanavamsa.* We learn from Tibetan sources that
Dharmapala (7th cent. A. D.) and Dlpankara Atisa (llth
century A. D.) visited Suvarnadvipa. 5

The name and fame of Suvarnabhumi and Suvarnadvipa
travelled far beyond the boundaries of India, and we find
reference to both in Greek, Latin, Arabic, and Chinese writings.

Pomponius Mela was the first to refer to the island of
Chryse (gold)- a literal translation of Suvarnadvipa in his
'De Chorographia', written during the reign of the emperor
Claudius (41-54 A. D.). 6 The Chryse island is referred to
in the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea (1st century A. D.) 7 ,
and is mentioned by Pliny (c. 77 A. D.) 8 , Dionysius
Periegetes (2nd. cent. A. D.), 9 Solinus (3rd. cent. A. D.), 10

1. This passage is discussed below, pp. 56 ff.

2. Mahakarma-Vibhanga Edited by S. Levi p. 50 ff.

3. Geiger Mahavarftsa, p. 86.

4. Mahakarma-Vibhanga p. 62 ; Sasanavamsa, p. 36.

5. Sarat Chandra Das, Indian Pandits in the Land of Snow,
p. 50 ; Kern Manual of Buddhism, p. 130.

6. Coedes Textes, p. 12.

7. Schoff's Translation, pp, 45-48.

8. Coedes Textes, p. 15.

9. Coedes, Textes, p. 71. The date of Dionysius is given as
second century A.D. by Coedes. Tozer in his History of Ancient
Geography (p. 282) assigns him to the first century A.D.

jo. Coedes Textes, p. 86.

40 SUVAKNADVIPA

Martianus Capella (5th. cent. A. D.), 1 Isidore of Seville
(7th. cent. A. D), a the anonymous author of Cosmography
(7th cent. A. D.), s Theodulf (8th. cent. A. D. ),* and
Nicephorus (13th. cent. A. D.) 8 , in addition to several
authors who reproduce the information given by Dionysius
Periegctes.*

Ptolemy (2nd. cent. A. D.) does not refer to the island of
Chryse, but mentions, instead, Chryse Chora a literal transla-
tion of Suvarnabhfimi and Chryse Chersonesus, or Golden
Peninsula. 7 The Chryse Chersonesus was evidently known
to Marinos of Tyre 8 (1st. cent. A. D.) and is mentioned
by Marcien (5th. cent. A. D.). e The only other writers who
refer to it ar'; Eustathios (12th. cent. A. D.) 10 and Etienna
(6th. cent. A. D. ) X1 who quote respectively Ptolemy and
Marcien. Flavius Josephus (1st. cent. A. D.) refers to Chryse
as a land in India and identifies it with Sophir. 1 *

The Indian tradition of Suvarnadvipa was also known to
the Arabs. Albenini refers to both Suvarnadvipa and
Suvarnabhumi. "The islands of the Zabaj," says he, "are called
by the Hindus Suvarnadvipa i. e. the gold islands". 18

1. Ibid, p. 116. He writes the name as Chrysea.

2. Ibid, pp. 136-137.

3. Ibid, p. 149. He uses the form 'Chrisi*.

4. Ibid, p. 150.

5. Ibid, pp. 160-161.

6. Etienne (6th. cent. A.D.), Eustathios (i2th cent. A.D.) ; cf.
Coedes Textes, pp. 132. 157. 159-

7. Coedes Textes, pp. 38-43, 53. 56, 60, 66.

8. Ptolemy refers to Marines' estimate of the distance between
Tamala and Chryse Chersonesus (Coedes Textes, p. 38.)

9. Coedes Textes, p. 118.

10. Ibid, p. 160

11. Ibid, p. 132.

12. Ibid, pp. l7-*8.

13. Sachau's Transl. Vol. I, p. 210. 'Zabaj* is also written as

Zabag.

SUVARNADVIPA 41

Elsewhere he says : "The islands of the Zabaj are called the Gold
Country because you obtain much gold as deposit if you wash
only a little of the earth of that country". 1 Although the
translator of Alberuiii has put, within brackets, Suvarnadvlpa
after the expression, 'Gold Country', the phrase used by Alberuni
is undoubtedly equivalent to Suvarnabhumi, rather than
Suvarnadvlpa. In another place Alberuni has included
Suvarnabhunii in the list of countries in the north-east, as
given in Brhat-Samhita. 2 Many other Arab writers refer to
Zabaj as the 'Golden land' or 'land of gold'. Among them may
be mentioned Haraki (died 1138 A.D.) 3 , Yakut (1179-1229)*,
Sirazi (died 1311 A.D.) 6 , and Buzurg bin Sahriyar 6 .
Nuwayri (died in 1332 A.D.) calls Fansiir (Pansur or Baros on
the western side of Sumatra) as the land of gold 7 . It may
be noted also that Buzurg bin Sahriyar in one place calls
Mankir the capital of the land of gold, though in other places
he evidently follows the Arab tradition of identifying it with
Zabaj 8 .

The name Suvarnadvlpa was also not unknown to the
Chinese. I-tsing twice mentions Kin-tcheu (gold-island) in
his famous "Memoir on the pilgrimage of monks who visited
the western countries in search of law", and uses it as a
synonym of Che-li-fo-che or Sri-Vijaya.

Having thus rapidly surveyed the wide prevalence of the
knowledge of Suvarnadvipa and Suvarnabhumi in many

1. Ibid, Vol. II., p. 106.

2. Ibid, Vol. I, p. 303.

3. J. A., Vol. CCII, p. 6.

4. Ibid, p. 7.

5. Ibid, pp. 8-9.

6. Ibid, pp. 10-12. The date of this author is uncertain. Van der
Lith places him in the loth century A.D., but Ferrand doubts it (Ferrand
Textes Vol. II. pp. 564-5).

7. J.A., Vol. CCII., p. 9.

8. Ibid, pp, 10- 1 1.

9. I-tsing Memoire (pp. 181, 187, p. 36, f.n. 3.)

6

42 SUVAENABVlPA

countries, extending over many centuries, we may now proceed
to discuss in detail its precise location and antiquity of its
colonisation by the Hindus.

It is a striking fact that the contrast between SuvarnabhQmi
and Suvarnadvipa, i.e., the Gold-land and the Gold-island,
which we meet with in the Indian sources, is also faithfully
reflected in the nomenclatures used by the western authors,
some of them calling it an island, and the others, cither a land
or a peninsula. Ptolemy, as we have seen, refers to both
Chryse Chora (golden land) and Chryse Chersonesus (Golden
Peninsula). He distinguishes them * as two different regions,
evidently lying close to each other, as both of them adjoined
Besyngeitai. We note a similar distinction even in the
Periplus of the Erythraean Sea. In para 56 of that work
Chryse is called an island. In para 63, however, Chryse is
referred to both as a 'land' near the Ganges, and 'an island'
just opposite that river.

Alberuni, as we have seen above, also uses both Suvarna-
dvipa and Suvarnabhumi.

Gerini was perhaps the first to give serious attention to
this contrast. As he has drawn very important conclusions
from this, we may quote his remarks at some length. 1

"Marinos of Tyre and Ptolemy are the first to speak of
the Malay Peninsula as the Golden Khersonese. The
geographers that preceded them, among whom Eratosthenes, 8
Dionysius Periegetes, and Pomponius Mela may be named, all
refer to it instead as Khryse or Chryse Insula : the "Golden
Isle", and so does long before them the Ramayana, under the
name of Suvarnadvipa, which conveys the same meaning. No
stress has, so far, been laid on this wide difference in representing

1. Gerini Researches, pp, 77-/8.

2. This is misleading. Gerini himself remarks elsewhere : "Doubtless
Eratosthenes had heard of them (Chryse and Argyre) although no
allusion in that sense is likewise met with in the surviving fragments of
his work." (Ibid, p. 670 f.n. i).

SUVABNADVlPA 43

that region on the one part as an island and on the other as
a peninsula. I believe, therefore, that I am the first to
proclaim, after careful consideration, that both designations
are probably true, each in its own respective time ; that is,
that the Malay Peninsula, or rather its southern portion,
has been an island before assuming its present highly
pronounced peninsular character. The view I now advance
is founded not only on tradition, but also upon geological
evidence of no doubtful nature."

Gerini then proceeds with the details of what he calls the
geological evidence.

Gerini's explanation, however, cannot be seriously considered.
In the first place, it is to be noted that the word l dvlpa* means
primarily *a land having water on two of its sides'. Thus
'dvlpa* is not identical with 'island', and includes peninsulas and
sometimes Doabs also. 1 As the foreign writers got their
information from Indian source, they might have taken 'dvlpa'
in the sense of 'island', whereas it was really a peninsula.
Further, it is a well-known fact, that ancient sailors often
represent one and the same country as consisting of a number
of separate lands or islands ; for, as the journey was made from
one port to another by open sea, the continuity of the region
was always a difficult matter to ascertain. The Arabs,
even down to a late period, represented Sumatra as consisting
of a number of separate islands. As to Malay Peninsula,
the subject of Gerini's discussion, Chavannes has pointed out
that the Chinese geographers of the T'ang period regarded it
as a series of islands. 8

The real point of contrast, missed by Gerini, is the reference
by one and the same author to two regions called Chryse,
one of which is mainland, and the other, an island or peninsula.
As we have seen above, this is the case with Ptolemy and the

i. Cunningham's Ancient Geography Edited by S, N. Majumdar,
Appendix I, p. 751.

3. I-tsing Memoire, (p. 36. f.n, 3),

44 SUVARNADVIPA

author of the Periplus. The question, therefore, naturally
arises, whether we should take Suvarnabhumi and Suvarna-
dvipa as corresponding exactly to these two regions, both called
Chryse by the western authors, one denoting a portion of the
mainland (bhQmi), and the other, an island or a peninsula (dvipa).

However tempting such a solution might appear at first,
we must definitely reject it. As we have seen above, Albenmi
applies the term Suvarnabhumi to the islands of Zabag which
he elsewhere designates Suvarnadvlpa. Besides, the island of
Sumatra, which is called Suvarnadvlpa in Chinese sources and
is undoubtedly referred to by this name in later Indian
literature, is designated as Suvarnabhiimi in an inscription found
in the island itself. 1

It is thus quite clear, that the term 'bhiirni' in the compound
'Suvarnabhumi' should not be taken in the sense of mainland, as
opposed to island or peninsula, but simply in the general sense
of land or territory.

This brings us to the question of the exact meaning of the
term Suvarnabhumi. Pomponius Mela explains the name
Chryse (gold) island by referring to an old tradition that the
soil of the country is made of gold. Ho adds that cither the
name is derived from this legend, or the legend is invented from
the name. In any case he took Suvurimbhilmi to signify 'the
country whose soil was gold'. This view was shared by a large
number of ancient writers, 2 but Pliny takes a more rational
view. Referring to Chryse he says : "I think the country
abounds in gold mines, for I am little disposed to believe the
report that the soil of it is gold/' Pliny's view is upheld by
later authors, though some of them refer to the wide-spread
tradition of the soil being gold. Dionysius Pcrtegetes seems

1. Een Sumatraansche inscriptic van koning Krtanagara by
N. J. Krom (Vers. Med, K. Akad. Weten Lctterkunde 5* reeks
deel II. 1916. pp. 306-339) reproduced in J. A. ii-XX, pp. 179-80.

2. According to Isidore of Seville the view was held by a majority
of authors (Coedes Textes, p. 137).

SUVAKNADVlPA 45

to explain the name as due to the strong rays of the sun which
makes the soil look like gold. 1

Among the Arab writers also, Harakl and Yakut take the
view that the soil is gold, while Albcruni attributes the name
to the fact that the country yields a large quantity of gold.

There is hardly any doubt that the old tradition of the golden
soil was derived from India. For the Puranas actually refer
to a country, outside Bharatavarsa, the mountain and soil of
which consist of gold 3 , and Divyavadfina describes in detail
the difficulties which one has to surmount in order to reach that
region of the earth where the soil is gold 3 . There is equally
little doubt that the origin of the name Suvarnabhumi has to be
traced to this belief, though a rational explanation was substituted
afterwards. The word bkUmi in Suvarnabhuim, therefore,
originally stood for soil or land in general, and there was no
idea of contrasting it with \lvlpa', island or peninsula.
It may be noted here, that we have also reference to cities called
Suvarnapura. In an illustrated Nepalese manuscript, a picture
is entitled "Suvarnnapure Sri-Vijaya-pure Lokanatha" or (the
image of) Lokanatha (AvalokiteSvara) in Sri-Vijaya-pura in
Suvarnnapura. Srl-Vijaya is the old name of a capital city in
Sumatra. So Suvarnapura should be located there, and seems
to be used as a designation for a region, rather than a town*.
The Kathasarit-sagara also refers to Kaficanapura, a synonym
of Suvarnapura, where the merchant ISvaravarman stopped on
his way to Suvarnadvlpa 5 . In Sana's Kadambarl also we
get a reference to "Suvarnapura, 6 not far from the eastern
ocean and the abode of the Kiratas,

1. CoedesTextes, p. 157. pp. 7i"73

2. Cf. e.g., Matsya Purana. Ch. 113, vv. 12, 42.

3. Mahantam Sauvarnabhumim prthivipradesarh (Divyavadana
Cowell, p. 107).

4. J. A. ii-XX, pp. 42-43-

5. Tarahga 57, v, 76.

6. Kadamvarl-Tr. by Ridding, pp. 90-91.

46 SUVARNADVlPA

Thus, in addition to the generic name Suvarnabhdmi, or gold-
land, we have references to gold-island, gold-peninsula, and
gold-city. It seeins to be quite clear, therefore, that Suvarna-
bhumi was used primarily as a vague general designation of an
extensive region, but, in course of time, different parts of it came
to be designated by the additional epithets of island, peninsula
or city. The original name, however, never went out of use
altogether, for we definitely know that, even at a much later
period, it used to denote Sumatra and portions of Burma. In
order to have a general idea of the extent of the region to which
the name Suvarnabhumi was applied, it is necessary to make a
list of territories which we know on definite grounds to have
borne that name in its primary or derivative form.

The Periplus makes it certain that the territories beyond the
Ganges were called Chryse. It does not give us any means to
define the boundaries more precisely, beyond drawing our
attention to the facts, that the region consisted both of a part of
mainland as well as an island, to the east of the Ganges, and
that it was the last part of the inhabited world. To the north
of tliis region it places This or China. In other words, Chryse,
according to this authority, has the same connotation as the
Trans-Gangetic India of Ptolemy, and would include Burma,
Indo-China, and Malay Archipelago, or rather such portions of
this vast region as were then known to the Indians.

Ptolemy's Cliryse Chcrsonesus undoubtedly indicates the
Malay Peninsula, and his Chryse Chora must be a region to the
north of it.

Now, we have definite evidence that a portion of Burma was
known in later ages as Suvarnabhumi. According to the
Kalyani inscriptions (147G A.D.), RamaSSadesa was also called
Suvannabhumi 1 , which would then comprise the maritime
region between Cape Negrais and the mouth of the Salwin.

i. Suvanijabhumi-ratta-saiiikhata Ramaflfiadesa ( Ind. Ant.
Vol. 22. 1893, p. 151).

SUVARNADVIPA 47

According to Po-U-Daung Inscription (1774 A.D.), 'SuvannS-
paranta, a designation usually syncopated into Sunaparanta or
Sonnaparanta, included the country between the Lower Iravati
and Chindwin and the Arakan Yoma. Now, AparSnta means
'western end or extremity', and hence the region denoted as
Suvannaparanta may be taken to denote the western end or
extremity of Suvarnabhumi. Thus these two place-names
would authorise us to apply the name Suvarnabhumi to a large
portion of Burma, both maritime and inland, and this would
also suit the location of Ptolemy's Chryse Chora 1 .

There can also be hardly any doubt, in view of the statement
of Arab and Chinese writers, and the inscription found in
Sumatra itself, that that island was also known as Suvariia-
bhumi and Suvarnadvlpa. Ferrand points out that even now
Sumatra is designated by the Malays as Pulaw Ernsts or the
island of gold (Suvarnadvlpa).

But the Arab writers definitely imply that Suvarnadvlpa
included a number of islands. Alberuni is quite clear on this
point. "The islands of the Zabaj", says he, "are called by
the Hindus Suvarnadvlpa, i.e., the gold islands". Ibn Said 2
( 13th century A. D. ) definitely asserts that Zabag is an
archipelago consisting of a large number of islands which
produce excellent gold, and says that Sribuza (Sri-Viyaya in
Sumatra) is the greatest of the islands of Zabag. The
same view is implied by other Arab writers both before and
after him. Thus, strictly speaking, the name Suvarnadvlpa
is applied by the Arabs, on the authority of the Hindus, to

1. Gerini Researches pp. 64 ff. There does not seem to be any
adequate reason for excluding the maritime region, as Gerini has done,
in locating Chryse Chora. Of course we must always bear in mind
that it is a fruitless task to attempt to define the exact location of
Ptolemy's place-names beyond a general indication such as we have
given above.

2. For the account of this and other Arab writers, cf. Ferrand J. A.
ii XX, pp. 52 ff.

48 StVARNADViPA

a large group of islands, roughly corresponding to Malay
Archipelago of the present day. Even as late as the
sixteenth century A.D., Budhagupta, a Buddhist monk, visited
two islands called Suvarnadvipa in the Eastern Sea. 1

There are thus definite evidences that Burma, Malay
Peninsula, and Sumatra had a common designation of
Suvarnabhumi, and the name Suvarnadvlpa was certainly applied
to Sumatra and other islands in the Archipelago. This does
not, however, take away the possibility of other territories
being designated by the one or the other name. Thus, on the
whole, we shall not perhaps be far wrong, if we take Suvarna-
bhumi and Suvarnadvlpa as general designations of Burma,
Malay Peninsula, and Malay Archipelago, as hinted at in the
Periplus. a But, keeping in view the literal meaning of the
word dclpa, we should restrict the use of the name Suvarnadvlpa
to the last two alone.

We shall now proceed to discuss briefly some of the
important localities in Suvarnadvipa which were definitely
known to the Hindus in ancient times.

As we have seen above, there is a reference to the island
of Chryse (gold) in the Periplus. This is associated with the
island of Argyre (silver) by many other classical authors, such
as Pomponius Mela, Pliny, Solin, Martianus Capella, Isidore of
Seville, and Theodulf. The origin of the name 'silver island'
is explained in the same way as that of the 'gold island'.

This close association naturally induces us to look for the
two islands near each other. Now, as the name Suvarnadvipa,
for the island of Sumatra, is well established, we might look

1. 1. H. Q., Vol. VII. (1931)1 pp. 698, 701.

2. The Chinese used the name 'Kouen louen' to denote Indo-China
and Indo-nesia as a whole. Recently S. Le*vi has shown that in a Chinese-
Sanskrit Dictionary this term is rendered by Sanskrit Dvipantara,
which therefore means, not 'another island' as has been generally
understood, but the 'Far East'. ( B. K. I. Vol. 88, 1931, pp. 621-627).

SUVARNADVIPA 49

upon the island of Java as corresponding to Argyre, and there
are several facts which speak in favour of this supposition.

It is somewhat singular that Ptolemy does not refer to the
large island of Sumatra, at least under any easily cognisable
name. The fact seems to be, that, like the later Arab writers,
he regarded it as a series of islands, which he called (1) the
group of five islands, the Barousai, and (2) the group of three
islands, the Sabadeibai.

Next to Sabadeibai Ptolemy places "the island of labadios
(or Sabadios) which means the island of barley." It is said
to be of extraordinary fertility and to produce very much gold,
and to have its capital called Argyre (Silver-town) in the
extreme west of it/ The explanation of the name leaves
no doubt that Ptolemy's labadios corresponds to Sanskrit
Yavadvlpa. 1

Now, Ptolemy nowhere refers to the islands of Chryse and
Argyre which figure so prominently in the writings of other
western geographers both before and after him. 8 His Chryse
Chersonesus may possibly represent the Chryse island of other
writers, but we cannot say anything definitely on this point.
The reference to an island with capital called Argyre, which is
not far from his Chrysc Chersonesus, and situated quite
close to Sumatra that undoubtedly bore the name Suvarna-
dvipa (equivalent to Chryse island), justifies us, therefore, in
identifying labadios as the Argyre island of other writers.

Thus the islands of Chryse and Argyre, referred to by
classical writers, would correspond to the well-known islands of
Sumatra and Java or the Malay Peninsula and Java.

This view is in full accord with what we find in the Periplus.
The author thus describes the coastal regions of Bengal. "After
these, the course turns towards the east again, and sailing with
the ocean to the right and the shore remaining beyond to the
left, Ganges comes into view, and near it the very last land

1, For further discussion see Chaps. VI-VII.

2. See ante. For further discussion see Chap. VI.

7

50 SUVARNADVlPA

towards the east, Chryse. There is a river near it called the

Ganges And just opposite this river there is an island in

the ocean, the last part of the inhabited world towards the east,
under the rising sun itself ; it is called Chryse."

Now, although the island of Sumatra or the Malay
Peninsula is at a great distance, it is undoubtedly opposite
the Ganges, in the sense, that if one sails straight towards
the south from the mouth of that river, he would reach the
island or the peninsula direct without coming across any other
land. That the author meant a somewhat remote region is
indicated by the expression, 'under the rising sun itself/ It
may be a vague reference to the equatorial region, but, in any
case, seems to indicate a sufficiently remote locality. It is
also interesting to note that Pliny and other writers locate
the islands of Chryse and Argyre as simply 'beyond the mouth
of the Indus river/ Thus the expression, "opposite the Ganges",
should not be understood in the sense in which we would
employ it to-day, but in a general way only, and Malay Peninsula
or Sumatra corresponds to the position fairly well.

Apart from the general and somewhat vague use of
Suvarnadvlpa, we may trace in Indian literature references to
various localities within that region. The earliest reference of
this kind, though equally vague in character, perhaps occurs
in the ninefold division of Bharatavarsa as given in the
Puranas. It has been argued with great plausibility that of
these nine divisions, one alone corresponds roughly to India
proper, and the other eight, therefore, designate other parts
of what may be called Greater India. Mr. S. N. Majumdar
who propounded this idea definitely identified one of these
divisions, Indradvlpa, with Burma, and suggested that another,
Kaserumat, might be Malay Peninsula. 1 But the question is
not free from difficulties as has been pointed out by Mr. S.
B. Chaudhury.*

1. Cunningham Ancient geography of India, Edited by
S. N. Majumdar, Appendix I. Sp. cf. pp. 752-754.

2. Ind. Ant, 1930, pp. 204 ft.

SUVARNADVIPA 51

But when the later Puranas like Garuda and Vamana
substitute Katsha and Simhala for Saiunya and Gandharva
of the other Puranas 1 , we have a definite reference to a
region in Malay Peninsula, for Kataha is the well-known name
of the locality now represented by Keddah. 3 The name
'Kataha-dvlpa' which was thus raised to the dignified position
of one of the great divisions of Bharatavarsa or Greater India
may be taken as roughly denoting the same region as
Suvarnadvipa, which name is entirely absent from the
Puranas.

In course of time, however, both the names came to be
applied to particular localities. The Kataha-dvlpa figures
prominently in the Kathasarit-sagara, as a rich and flourishing
country, but is distinguished from Suvarnadvipa ; for, as already
noted above, a story relates how the princess of Kataha-dvlpa
was ship-wrecked near Suvarnadvipa on her way to India. The
same story tells us that the mother of the princess was the
sister of the king of Suvarnadvipa. 8 This leads to the
conclusion that the Kataha-dvlpa and Suvarnadvipa were
situated close to each other, but we must not count too much
upon exact geographical knowledge of a story-writer. We
have also the famous story of Devasmita, in which her husband,
the merchant Guhasena, sails from Tamralipti to Kataha,
and she follows him there after a short period. 4 The story
of the foolish merchant also leads us to Kataha. 5

Geographically, the most interesting story in this connection
is that of Candrasvamin who lost his son and younger sister
in the wood. They were supposed to have been rescued by a
merchant named Kanakavarman. Having learnt that the

1. Ibid. The verse in the two Puranas runs as follows :
Nagadvipalj Katahagca Sirhhalo Varunastatha I (Garuda Purana
Ch. 55-V. 5, Vamana Purana Ch. 13, V, 10.)

2. See Book II. Chap. II.

3. Tarahga 123, vv. 105 ff.

4. Tarafiga 13, vv. 70. ff.
. Taranga 61, v. 3.

52 SUVARNADVlPA

merchant had sailed for Narikela-dvipa, Candrasvamin embarked
in a ship and went across the sea to that island. There he
learnt that Kanakavarman had gone to Kataha-dvlpa. Candra-
svamin followed him there, only to learn that Kanakavarman
had gone to Karpura-dvlpa. In this way poor Candrasvamin
visited in turn Narikela-dvlpa, Kataha-dvlpa, Karpura-dvipa,
Suvarnadvipa and Simhala-dvlpa. 1

The Narikela-dvlpa is mentioned both by Chinese and Arab
writers. 8 According to Hiuen Tsang the people grew no
grain but lived only on cocoaimts, which evidently gave the
name to the island. He places it 'thousands of li' to the south
of Ceylon. It has been identified with Nicobar island. 3

The Karpdra-dvlpa is also named by Arab writers.* It
is either Borneo or north (specially the north-west) side of
Sumatra, where lies the port Boms from which to this day the
Malays name the true camphor, Kapur Barus. Blagden considers
this latter identification as more probable. 5

A similar knowledge of the islands in the Archipelago may
be traced even in the Puriinas. 4"he Vflyu Parana contains
a chapter describing the various dclpas to the south of
India. 6 Although there is much that is imaginary or mythical,
there seems to be a kernel of fact. It describes in particular
a group of six islands named Anga-dvipa, Yama-dvlpa,
Malaya-dvlpa, Sankha-dvlpa, Ku5a-dvipa and Vnraha-dvipa.

1. Taranga 56, VV. 54 ff-

2. Narikela-dvTpa is mentioned, among others, by Hiuen Tsang
(Beal Vol. II, p. 252) and Ibn Said (i3th cent. A. D.). The latter also
refers to it as a dependency of Ceylon (Ferrand-Textes Vol. II, p. 339).

3. For the identification and other details, cf. Yule- Marco Polo,
Book III, Chap. XII notes. Beal identifies it with Maldive islands Beal,
Vol. II, p. 252, f.n. 36.

4. Ibrahim bin Wasif Sah (c. 1000 A. D.), Ibn Ai Wardi (i4th
cent,), Thousand and One Nights ; cf. Ferrand Textes, pp. 157, 422,

570-573-

5. Cf. N.M. Penzer's note in his edition of Tawney's English

Translation of Kathasarit-sagara - Ocean of Stories, Vol. IV, p. 224. fn. i

6. Chapter, 48.

SUVABNADVIPA 53

Among these, Malaya-dvlpa may be identified with Malay
Peninsula. Malaya-dvlpa is described as producing precious
stones, gold, and sandal, and this suits well with Malay
Peninsula. Besides, reference is made to the city of Lanks,
which may be identified with Lenkasuka (see Chap. V).
The Sankha-dvipa may be identified with the island of Sankhay,
frequently mentioned by Arab writers. According to them it
was three days' voyage from Malaya and was included within
the empire of Sri-Vijaya. It gave the name to the
neighbouring sea, and there was also a town called after
it. 1 The Anga-dvipa may be identified with the Angadiya
of the Arab writers, which is named immediately after a
place on the Siamese coast and is located in the Bay of
Bengal.* In the group of three islands, named Barawa
by the Arab writers, we can easily recognise the Varaha-dvipa
of the Vayu Purana. These islands are placed about 100
farsangs from Fansur, i.e., Baros on the coast of
Sumatra. 3 The Yama-dvipa may be the same as Yamakoti,
which was regarded as being 90 to the east of Laftka.*
Now, even admitting that these identifications are merely
conjectural, the fact that most of these names are mentioned
by Arab writers as names of islands in the Archipelago is not
without importance. It certainly leads to the presumption that
the Puranik writers had some real knowledge of the Malay
Peninsula and Indian Archipelago, although they embellished
their accounts with a great deal of mythology and fiction.

Another indication of the geographical knowledge of the
Hindus regarding the Far East is supplied by a passage in
the Ramayana. M. Sylvain Levi has pointed out that this
passage served as the basis of similar geographical accounts

1. Edrisl, (194), Ibn Said (346), Dimaski (377, 381) and Nuwayri
(395). The figures within brackets refer to pages of Ferrand Textes.

2. Sidi al-Celebi (Ferrand Textes, p. 523).

3. Ferrand Textes, pp. 583-4.

4. Sachau Alberuni, Vol. I, p. 305.

54: SUVAKNADVlPA

in HarivarhSa and the Buddhist Sfltra called Saddharma-
SmytyupasthSna. For a critical study of the passage in all
its bearings, we must refer the reader to the original article of
that scholar 1 . Here we shall content ourselves with only a
few points, relevant to our present study, which emerge clearly
from his scholarly discussion.

The most important passage runs as follows :

Yatnavanto yavadviparii sapta-rajyopagobhitam I
Suvarnarupyakadvipam Suvarn&karamanditam. li

Unfortunately this passage appears in radically different
forms not only in the different texts of Bamayana but also
in HarivamSa, RSmayana-maSjar! of Ksemendra and the
Saddharraa-Smrtyupasthana-Sutra which reproduce it. Thus
Yavadvlpa appears only in the Bombay edition ; the
Bengali edition substitutes jaladvlpam, whereas the other
parallel passages omit it altogether. Similarly the first and
the third words in the first line, given above on the authority
of the Bombay version, are replaced respectively by
'ratnavantam' and 'phalabhojyopaSobhitam'. The reading
'Yavadvipam' is undoubtedly to be preferred, but we are less
sure about the two others. Thus we cannot be quite certain
if 'Yavadvlpa' was adorned with seven kingdoms as the
Bombay text informs us.

As to the second line, ' Siivar\ianipydka' appears as the
name of a separate island in the Bengali version, but
Ramayana-maiijarl and HarivamSa substitute Stivarnakitdyaka.
The latter reading is supported by the Snrrtyupasthana-Siitra,
as both the Chinese and the Tibetan translations of the
passage render the name as 'island called 'wall of gold', an
exact translation of Suvarnakudya-dvlpa.

Now, Suvarnakudya is mentioned thrice as the name of
a country in Kautillya ArthaSastra*, and on this ground
Ldvi has preferred this reading. He takes as equivalent to this

j. J.A.n-XI.,pp. 5-160.
3. Book II. Chap. XI.

SUVARNADVtPA 55

name, the Chinese Kin-lin by which they designate a country,
2000 li to the west of Fou-nan (Cambodia), and situated along
a bay 1 . This would locate it in the Malay Archipelago.

It is to be noted here that Siivarna-rnpyaka-dvlpam is
an exact equivalent of the island of Chryse (Suvarna) and
Argyre (rupyaka-stiveT) of the classical writers. Further,
the Smrtyupasthana-Sutra says that the soil of the island which
it calls Suvarna-kudyaka is gold. This supports the reading
Suvarnakaramanditam which we get in the Bombay version
and Harivama, but which is replaced by Ganadvlpam, a third
island, in the Bengali version. If we accept this reading,
we may have here the origin of the classical tradition about
the Chryse island referred to above. On the whole it seems
that we have here a reference to both a gold and a gold-cum-
silver island, though the two have been confused.

The next important passage, which is practically identical
in both the versions of Ramayana, runs as follows :
AmamlnaSanaScapi kirata dvlpavasinah I
antarjalacara ghora nara-vyaghra iti smytjltt II

The Ramayana-MaSjarl of Ksemendra substitutes the
following ;

"antarjalacaran ghoran samudradvlpasamSrayan,

Thus the same two adjectives arc applied, in the one case
to the Kiratas, and in the other, to the people of Samudra-dvipa.
As the Kiratas have already been described in the preceding
passage in Ramayana, the reading of Ramayana-manjarl is
preferable. In any case it presents a new name Samudra-dvipa.
Now, this may mean either 'island of the sea' or the 'island called
Samudra/ The first meaning is, of course, pointless, so we may
take the second and find in it a reference to Samudra, which,
being corrupted to 'Sumutra', has given the name Sumatra to
the great island in the Archipelago.

It is interesting to note in this connection that Kautilya's
Arthafifistra refers to a country called 'Para-samudra', and

i. fetudes Asiatiques, Vol. II, p. 36.

56 SUVARNADVlPA

another, called 'Pasa/ 1 These may be taken as referring
to the two neighbouring states of Samudra and Pase, in the
north of Sumatra, to which frequent reference is made by
mediaeval writers. 4

Further, the geographical chapter under discussion describes
various barbarians in the Eastern Sea more or less in the
same way as Ptolemy has done in his account of the islands
in the Archipelago.

The Buddhist writers show a more extensive knowledge
of the countries in the East. The Milindapafiha, as we have
seen above, refers to Suvannabhumi, Takkola and Cma. The
Mddesa, commenting on the word "torment" in the Sutta-
nipata, describes the various kinds of torments which a sailor
experiences, while, overpowered by desire for wealth and
enjoyment, he sails in high seas in a boat and goes to (1) Gumba,
(2) Takkola, (3) Takkasila, (4) Kalamukha, (5) Maramipara,
(6) Vesunga, (7) Verapatha, (8) Java, (9) Tamali, (10) Vauga,
(11) Elavaddhana, (12) Suvannakuta, (13) Suvannabhumi,
(14) Tambapanni, (15) Suppara, (16) Bharukaccha, (17) Surattha,
(18) Anganeka, (10) Gangana, (20) Paramagangana, (21) Yona,
(22) Paramayona, (23) Allasanda, (24) Marukantara,
(25) Jannupatha, (26) Ajapatha, (27) Mendhapatha, (28) Saiiku-
patha, (29) Chattapatha, (30) Vamsapatha, (31) Sakunapatha,
(32) Masikapatha, (33) Daripatha, (34) Vettadhara (or Vettacara).
This interesting passage has been the subject of a
learned dissertation by M. Sylvain Levi ; and the readers are
referred to his scholarly article for a detailed discussion of
the various points arising out of it. 8 Its chief importance,

1. Book II. Chap. XI.

2. The name Para-Samudra is explained as Ceylon in a late
commentary to which no importance should be attached. It places
Suvarnakutfyaka in Assam. Dr. H. C. Raychaudhury has supported
this identification by equating Para-Samudra with Palaesimundu of the
Periplus. But the equation Palaesimundu Para-Samudra is not very
obvious.

3. Etudes Asiatiques, Vol. II, pp. i-5$ 431.

SUVARNADVlPA 5?

for our purpose, is the very comprehensive view it offers of
the sea-going trade in ancient India. It describes twenty-four
localities (Nos. 1-24) which the merchants visited by way of sea,
and ten difficult routes (Nos. 25-34) which they had to follow
on land, apparently after reaching the harbour on the sea-
coast. Of the twenty-four localities, Nos. 15 to 24 evidently
belonged to the western side of India and do not concern us
here. Suvannabhumi (No. 13), Vesunga (6), VerSpatha (7),
and Takkola (2) correspond to Ptolemy's Chryse Chora,
Besyngeitai, Berabai, and Takkola, the first mart in the Chryse
Chersonesus. As such, Suvannabhami may be located in Burma
and the same is perhaps true of Suvannabhumi, mentioned
in the MilindapaSha along with Takkola. The Kalamukha
(4) is mentioned as the name of a tribe both in Ramayana
and Mahabharata, and the country is to be placed on the
Arakan coast. Java (8) can be easily identified as the
well-known island of Java. Tamali (9) is the same as
Tambralinga, referred to in a Sanskrit inscription discovered
at Caiya in Malay Peninsula, and has to be placed in that
region. 1 Suvannakuta (12) has been equated by Levi with
Suvarnakudyaka which we have already discussed above.
Tambapanni (14) is, of course, Ceylon. Gumba (1), Maranapara
(5), and Elavaddhana (11), are not known from any other
source and cannot be identified for the present.

There remain now Takkasila (3) and Vanga (10) which
are both well-known places, one in the north-west, and
the other, in the eastern part of India. But the usual identi-
fication of Takkasila with Taxila would be somewhat
incongruous, as the place is named in a list of trans-Gangetic
countries to the east. While, therefore, nothing definitely
can be said in this matter, Levi has drawn our attention to
the river Tokosanna, mentioned by Ptolemy, near Arakan
coast, and the Takkasila of the text may be located here.
The identification of Vanga with Bengal seems equally

i. Cf, Book II. Chap. II.
8

58 SUVAENADVlPA

objectionable, particularly when we remember that it is both
preceded and followed by other places in Malay Peninsula
and the Indian Archipelago. Lvi has pointed out that the
Manuscripts also give an alternative reading vankam, and this
can be easily identified with the island of Banka to the
east of Sumatra.

The list of Niddesa thus practically covers a large part of
the region which we have named Suvarnabhumi and
Suvarnadvlpa, and of all the Indian texts available to us it
shows the most detailed knowledge of the oversea centres of
trade in the East. Levi has drawn attention to the points of
agreement between this list and that given by Ptolemy, and
has drawn the conclusion that both must belong to approximately
the same period. The knowledge of the Far East possessed
by Pliny and the author of the Periplus makes it highly
improbable that such an extensive and detailed knowledge of
the Far East, as is shown by the author of Niddesa, existed
in India in the first century A. D. On the other hand, the
absence of any reference to Cambodge or Champa makes it
equally improbable that the list was drawn up in the third century
A. D. when those countries were certainly known to India.
Thus the list of Niddesa must have been drawn up between
the end of the first and the beginning of the third century A. D.

We shall now say a few words about the ten extraordinary
routes mentioned at the end of the passage in Niddesa. The
meaning of these has been made clear, partly by the commen-
tary Saddhammappajotika, and partly by the occurrence of
some of them in the story of the merchant Sanudasa as narrated
in Brhatkatha-Slofea-samgraha.

The story of Sanudasa is thus summarised by Lacote 1 .

'Sanudasa joins the gang of the adventurer Jcera, who
is preparing an expedition to the land of Gold (Suvannabhflmi).
They cross the sea and land at the foot of a mountain. They
climb up to the top by catching hold of creepers ( Vetra). This
is the "creepers' path" (Vetrapattta). On the plateau there
I. Translation by Tabard, p. 131.

SUVARNADV1PA 59

is a river which changes into stone everything that falls into
it. They cross it by holding on to the bamboos which overhang
the banks 1 . This is "the bamboos' path" (Vamspatha).
Further on, they meet a narrow path between two precipices.
They light a fire with wet branches ; the smoke attracts some
Earatas who come and propose to sell them some goats ; the
adventurers get on those goats, the only animals sure-footed
enough to be able to follow the narrow edge without feeling
giddy. This is "the goats' path" (Ajapatha). The adventurers
do not come to the end of it without some difficulty as another
gang is approaching from the opposite direction. A struggle
ensues, but Accra's troops are able to pass through after having
thrown their enemies into the ravines. Sanudasa begins to feel
indignant at the fierceness of the gold-seekers. Acera orders
his followers to slay the goats and to put on their skins with
the inside out. Huge birds will mistake those men for a heap
of raw meat, come and carry them away to their aerie. It is
there the gold is ! Sanudasa attempts to save the goat he was
riding, but his companions are pitiless. Everything takes place
as Acera had foretold, but the bird which carries off Sanudasa
is attacked by another bird which attempts to steal his prey.
The goat's skin bursts open and Sanudasa falls in a tank which
is in the heart of a luxuriant forest. The next day he comes
to a river the banks of which are of golden sand ; near by, there
is a hermitage from which a hermit comes out.'

The story thus explains Ajapatha (26) and Vamsapatha (30),
and the episode of Sanudasa being carried aloft by a huge
bird evidently explains the Sakunapatha (31). Mendhapatha
(27) obviously is to be explained in the same way as Ajapatha,
substituting ram for a goat. The Vetrapatha is added in the
story and may correspond to Vettadhara or VettacSra (No. 34).

I. The bamboos on the other bank of the river are bent by strong
winds, and a man catches hold of the top of one of them as soon as it is
within the reach of the bank on which he is standing. Then, when the
storm subsides, the bamboo reverts to its old position, and the man
holding fast to it is carried along with it to the other bank,

60 SUVARNADVlPA

The commentary explains Jannupatha (25) as the way where
one has to crawl on knees. On Sankupatha (28) it gives a long
explanatory note, describing the means by which a man could
ascend a mountain. An iron hook, attached to a rope of skin,
is thrown up till the hook is fixed up in the mountain. Having
climbed up the rope, the man makes a hole on the hillside with
a diamond-tipped iron instrument, and fixes a spear. Having
caught hold of this, he detaches the hook, and throws it aloft
again, till it is again fixed up in the mountain. Then he ties
the rope to the spear, and having caught hold of the rope with
one hand, strikes it by a hammer with the other till the
spear is detached. Then he climbs up again, again fixes the
spear, and repeats the process till he ascends the top of the
hill.

Chattapatha (29) is explained in the commentary as the way
where one jumps down from a precipice with an open parasol,
(chatta=chatra) made of skin, and descends slowly to the ground,
on account of the resistance of the air. In other words, it
involved the principle of parachute.

The Masikapatha (32) and Daripatha (33) are not explained
by the commentary and cannot be exactly understood.

References to these extraordinary routes are not confined
to the two texts mentioned above. They are met with in the
VimSnavatthu, the Jatakas, Milindapanha, Vayu Purana,
Matsya Purana, Kfttyayana's Vartika and Ganapatha 1 . None
of these, however, mentions a large number of them, and the
Puranas alone add a new one, Kharapatha, which is evidently
to be explained in the same way as Ajapatha, substituting ass
(khara) for goat (a/a).

It is to be noted that Katy5yana associates these ways with
merchants, and MilindapaSha agrees in a way, substituting

cf. Etudes Asiatiques, Vol. II, pp. 45-50, for details. References

; are

to Vimanavatthu LXXXIV ; Tittirajataka (Jataka III, 541), Milindapafiha
(p. 280) ; Vayu Purana, Ch. 47, v. 54 ; Matsya Purana Ch. 121, v. 56 ;
Patafijali's comment on Panini's Sutra V, 1,77 ; Ganapatha on Panini
V. 3. ioo f

SUVAKNADVlPA 61

seekers of wealth for merchants. The Vimanavatthu definitely
associates them with oversea countries, agreeing in this respect
with Niddcsa and Brhatkatha-Sloka-saihgraha. The Puranas
also mention them in connection with countries outside India.

We may now sum up the results of the preceding discussion.
It is quite clear that from a very remote time the Indians
possessed a vague idea of the countries in the Far East across
the sea. The relation, no doubt, originated in trade, and the
tradition of fabulous wealth earned by that trade gave rise
to all sorts of mythical stories about the golden land. The
Puranik accounts of the varsas and dvlpas, which represent this
stage, were based on vague sailors' reports, but were also mingled
with a great deal of fancy and imagination.

The steady development of this trade is reflected in th
Jatakas, Brhatkatha, Kautillya ArthaSastra and Milinda-
paSha, where we have not only a more definite idea of the
region, now called Suvarnabhunii, but also a knowledge of
important localities within it. This intimate intercourse may
be referred to the two or three centuries immediately preceding
the Christian era.

During the first two centuries of the Christian era, the
mercantile relations led to colonisations on a fairly large scale.
This is evidenced both by the popular stories as well as the by
Sanskrit names applied to many localities within this region.
Ptolemy and Niddesa represent this stage of development which
may thus be regarded as an accomplished fact by the second
century A. D.

The literary evidence leaves no doubt that trade was the
chief stimulus of this intercourse between India and the Far East.
Missionary and political activities must have followed in the
wake of trade. Indeed, if literature can be regarded as a
fair reflex of popular mind, trade and commerce must have
been a supreme passion in India in the centuries immediately
preceding and following the Christian era, perhaps very much
in the same way as it is in Europe to-day. The extraordinary
routes mentioned above, together with the details of ship-wreck

62 SUVABNADVlPA

and perils of the sea preserved in numerous stories, are but a
faint echo of that romantic age of adventures and explorations.
If the history of that wonderful epoch of new discoveries had
been preserved to us, we might possibly present it as a not
unworthy parallel of the similar period in modern age. We lay
particular stress on this fact, as it is the background of our
study of ancient Indian colonisation in the Far East.

Indeed, the evidence of a commercial origin of tliis inter-
course with the Far East meets us at every step. In the first
place, almost all the literary references given above deal with
stories of merchants or seekers of wealth. Secondly, the geo-
graphical names, applied by the Indians, all refer to minerals,
metals, or some industrial and agricultural products. We may
note, for example, Suvarnadvipa ( and its variants Hemakdta
Suvarnakdta, Suvarnakudya), Rupyakadvlpa, Tamradvlpa, Yava-
dvlpa, Lankftdvlpa, Takkola, Sankha-dvipa, KarpQra-dvIpa,
Narikela-dvlpa, etc.

Thirdly, Kautillya ArthalSstra knows of foreign countries
only in connection with their industrial products.

Fourthly, we may refer to a statement of K'ang T'ai, the
Chinese ambassador to Fou-Nan about the middle of the third
century A. D., which runs as follows :

"Formerly, during the reign of Fan-Chan, a man called Kia-
Siang-li came from India to Fou-Nan for purposes of trade.
He gave a short account of India to Fan-Chan who then asked
him : "What is the distance of India ? How long does it take
to go to that country V 9 Kia-Siang-li replied : "India is about
30,000 li from here. A journey to India and back would require,
three or four years'' l This passage and another statement of
K'ang T'ai" shows that the earliest intercourse between India
and the Far East was through adventurous merchants, and it
was well established as early as the third century A. D.

i. B. E. F. E. O f Vol. Ill, pp. 277-8.
9. Etudes Asiatiques, Vol. II, pp. 249-50.

SUVAENADVlPA 63

Some traditions, no doubt, represent Ksatriya adventurers
from India as having conquered territories in the Far East>
but they must have followed in the wake of merchants. l

It is, of course, true that trade and commercial relations
led to the establishment of political and cultural relations as
well. But these were secondary results and not primary
motives of intercourse. There is no reference in our literature
to any deliberate policy of political expansion or religious
propaganda across the sea, until we come to the Ce.ylonese
Chronicle Mahiivaiiisa. As is well-known, it refers to tho
conquest of Ceylon by Vijaya at the time of Buddha, and the
despatch of a Buddhist mission to Suvamiabhnim in the time
of ASoka. Whether the dates of either of those events can
be accepted as true is a matter of dispute. But in any case,
if true, they would constitute the only exceptions, and
even then we should remember that the path had already
been paved by the merchants.

On the whole it can be definitely laid down, that trade and
commercial activity were the first, and, for a long time, the
only incentive to the perilous voyages across the sea. Tho
traders spread Indian culture along with their wares, and as
opportunities offered, they might have seized the political power.
But it is only at a comparatively later age, that adventurous
Ksatriya princes came to seek their fortune, or individual
monk or bands of missionaries came to propagate their religious
doctrines. We possess evidence of both, but they all belong
to a later period.

The subsequent history of individual colonies will show, that
this peaceful penetration of the Indians resulted in the fusion
of Indians with their diverse races, and the evolution of a new
culture which partook of elements of both. The dominant
race imposed its language, religion and social customs, but
could not efface all traces of indigenous element** in respect
of any of these. As years went on, and the contact with India

I, These have been referred to in my work 'ChampS,' pp. XI fi"

64 SUVARNADVIPA

grew less and less, the native elements again asserted themselves.
All these will be illustrated by the detailed history of the Indian
colonies in the Malay Peninsula, and the islands of Java,
Sumatra, Borneo, and Bali to which we now proceed.

Chapter V.

EARLY HINDU COLONISATION IN MALAY
PENINSULA.

The Malay Peninsula or the Peninsula of Malacca is tho
name given to that long narrow strip of territory which,
projecting southwards from Judo-China, divides the Bay
of Bengal from the China Sen, and forms the most southerly
extremity of the mainland of Asia. It is called by the natives
Tanah Malayu, the land of the Malays. It is now generally
regarded as beginning at the Isthmus of Kra, in Lat. 10, but,
in the widest sense, the peninsula extends from the parallel
of the head of the Gulf of Siam, in Lat. 13-30'. The peninsula
runs at first south, and then in a south-eastern direction, for
about 800 miles. The distance from the Isthmus of Km to
Cape Rumenia ( east of Singapore ), as the crow Hies, would
be about 750 miles. Cape Rumenia is nearly, though not
exactly, the most southerly point in the peninsula, Tanjong
Bulus ( l-lt>i'N. ), a little to the west, occupying that position.
The peninsula is bounded on the north by Siam, and is
surrounded by the sea in all other directions ; by the China Sea
and the Gulf of Siam on the cast, by the Strait of Singapore on
the south, and by the Straits of Malacca arid the Bay of Bengal
on the west. There are many islands along the shores of the
peninsula, the most notable being Langkawi and Penang on
the west, and Singapore, Batan and Biritang on the south.
The islands on the eastern coast are fewer and smaller.

The most characteristic physical feature of the peninsula
is the long range of granite mountains which runs along its

9

66 MALAY PENINSULA

whole length, descending somewhat abruptly into a wider
plain on the east, and more gently into a narrower plain on
the west. In addition to smaller ranges running parallel to
the main chain, there are also isolated spurs and limestone
buffs. The highest peak in the main range, Gunong Kerbau,
has an altitude of 7,160 ft., but the highest mountain is
Gunong Tahan (7, 186 ft.) on the eastern side.

Almost the whole of the peninsula both alluvial plains
and mountain ranges is covered by evergreen forests, mostly
dense jungles, the major part of which is yet untrodden by
human foot. The forests yield excellent timber, including
eaglewood, camphor tree, and ebony, and also less durable,
but more frequently used, materials of Malayan architecture,
such as rattans, bamboos, the nibung, and the nipa palms.
Guttapcrcha, rubber, oils, and resins are also obtained from
the forests. The chief products of agriculture are rice, sugar-
cane, coffee, cotton, sago, pepper, spices, and rubber. There
are also some excellent fruit trees such as the mango-steen,
durian, pomegranate, jack-fruit, custard-apple, cocoa-nut, areca-
nut, sugar-pahn, and banana.

The rivers are numerous, but small, and in most cases
navigable for large boats only upto a short distance from the
mouth. The more notable arc the Pcrak, Bornam and Muar
on the west, and Patani, Talukin, Kelantan, Bcsut, Trengganu,
Kuantan, Pahang and Rompin on the east. On account of
the impenetrable forests, the rivers have always formed
the chief highways of communication, and it is on the banks
of the rivers that the main centres of civilisation have
grown.

The chief mineral products are tin, iron, gold, and coal.
The peninsula, with the islands adjacent to it, contains by
far the most extensive tin fields in the world, and supplies nearly
one-third of the world's output of that metal. Gold mines
exist in Pahang, Kelantan, and Perak, and they are known
to have been worked even in very ancient times. Among

SUVARNADVlPA 67

other mineral products may be mentioned copper, mercury,
lead, silver, zinc, and coal. 1

Although it is not within the scope of the present work
to deal with the existing political condition of the Malay
Peninsula, a brief review of its political geography is nece-
ssary for the proper understanding of the subject. The northern
part of the peninsula, forming a narrow isthmus running
nearly due north and south to the length of 140 miles, is inha-
bited by the Siamese or a, cross between them and the Malays,
known to the latter by the name of Sansam. This portion,
with territories further south, is politically subject to Siam and
forms an integral part of that kingdom. The Siamese dominion
is confined to the northern part of the peninsula, and comprises
the following states, some of which, specially those in the north,
forming practically so many Siamese provinces : on the west
coast, beginning from north, are Eanong, Takua Pa, Takuatung,
Pukct ( or Junk Ceylon, a corruption of the Malay name of
Ujong Salang), Palian and Satul ; on the east coast, Patavi,
Chumpaun, Caiya, the island of Samui, Nakonsitamaraj (Nakhon
Sri Tha(dha)mmarat), Patalung, Sengora, Ghana Tepa, Nongchik,
Tani Jaring, Jala, Sai Ranga, Raman, and Patani. To the south
of these lie the states of Perils and Keddah on the west and
Kelantan and Trcngganu in the cast, over which the kingdom
of Siam exercised suzerainty until recent times, but which now
form the Non-Federated Malay States, protected and advised

I. In spito of numerous works on the Malay Peninsula, it is not
easy to get a simple and accurate description of the physical features of
the land. The statements in different authorities also do not always
agree, particularly as regards distance, area, and the height of mountains.

The above account is based on the following books :-

a. John Crawfurd A Descriptive Dictionary of the Indian
Islands and Adjacent Countiies (London 1856) ; (s. v. Malay Peninsula).

b. J. H. Moor Notices of the Indian Archipelago and Adjacent
Countries (Singapore, 1837), pp. 241. ff.

c. Major C. M. Enriquez Malaya (Hurst and Blackett, 1927).

d. Encyclopaedia Britannica I4th Edition,

68 MALAY PENINSULA

by the British. The southern part of the peninsula consists
of states which are more directly under the British authority.
The regular British territories, forming the Crown Colony of
Straits Settlements, are in point of size "mere dots on the map
of the Malay Peninsula. One dot is Singapore ; a little way
up the coast, Malacca is another ; still following the coast, the
Bindings form a third ; Penang and Province Wcllesley are
two more."

The other states known as Federated Malay States are not,
strictly speaking, British possessions, but they are ruled all but
in name by the British Resident. These are Perak, Selangor,
and the group of nine states, collectively known as Negri Sern-
bilan, on the west, and Pahang on the east coast. To the
south of these is the important State of Johore forming the
southernmost portion of the Malay Peninsula. Since 1914 it has
been included among the Non-Federated States, being protected
and advised by the British. 1

The Malay Peninsula ( taking it in its narrower significance,
to the south of the Isthmus of Era ) has a population of about
three and a half millions. This includes 1,600,000 Malays,
1,200,000 Chinese, 470,000 Indians, and about 33,000 aboriginal
or primitive tribes. The racial elements among the original
people of Malay Peninsula have already been discussed above.
The Chinese and Indian colonists have settled there since the
early centuries of the Christian era. During the last four
centuries the Europeans and Americans have formed a small
colony, numbering at present about 15,000, with 12,000
Eurasians.

It has already been shown above that the Malay Peninsula
held a very important position in respect of maritime trade in
the Far East from a very early period. Indeed, its geographical

j. The account of the political divisions is based mainly on "The
Peoples and Politics of the Far East" by Sir Henry Norman (T. Fisher
Unwin, 1907). In some respects it is corrected by 'Malaya' by Enriquez
and Encyclopaedia Britannica, i^\\ Edition,

SUVARNADVlPA 69

position made it the centre of carrying trade between China
and the western world.

It must have been known to India from very early times.
As has already been mentioned above, the names of both
Malaya-dvlpa and Kataha-dvlpa occur in the PurSnas, and some
of the Puranas include Kataha-dvlpa among the nine dvlpas
into which the known world is divided.

The earliest definite reference to this region is made by
Ptolemy. He calls it 'Chryse Chersonesus', an equivalent of
the Indian name Suvarnadvlpa, and expressly refers to an active
maritime trade between India and this region.

Ptolemy has shown a fair degree of knowledge as regards
the geography of Malay Peninsula. He names successively
(1) Takkola, a mart; (2) a cape situated after Takkola ; (3) mouth
of the river Chrysoana ; (4) Sabana, a mart ; (5) mouth of
the river Palandas ; (6) cape Maleu Kolon ; (7) mouth of
the river Attaba ; (8) Koli, a town ; (9) Perimula ; and
(10) Bay of Perimula. In a supplementary list he refers to the
inland towns, Balongka, Kokkonagara, Tharrha, and Palanda. 1
It is not possible to identify exactly any of these", but that
does not take away the great importance of Ptolemy's writings.
S. Levi has shown that Ptolemy's account regarding the
Far East possesses a striking agreement with that given in
Niddesa, a Pali canonical book. 8 This proves, in his opinion,
not only the general accuracy of the Greek account, but also
that the Indians had acquired a far greater amount of
knowledge of the Far East since the days when neither Pliny
nor the author of the Pcriplus could gain anything but a vague
report of Suvarnabhiimi from his Indian informants. In
other words, the century 50-150 A. D. witnessed a remarkable

1. M'Crindle Ptolemy, pp. 197-8, 226.

2. Gerini's long discourses on the identification of Ptolemy's
geographical names seem to be too unscientific to be relied upon. (cf.
Researches, pp. 81-115).

3. S. LeVi Etudes Asiatiques, Vol. II, pp. i if., specially cf. p. jo.

70 MALAY PENINSULA

growth in the trade and maritime activity of the Indians in
the Far East. This is further corroborated by the fact, that
not only the general name Suvarnabhflmi, but also local place-
names such as Takkola, Java, and T&mralinga, and the name-
ending 'nagara' in Kokkonagara, are purely Indian. 1 It may
also be noted that by the second century A. D. there was a
regular intercourse between India and China, either through
the Isthmus of Kra, or the Straits of Malacca. 8

This period of active intercourse must also be regarded
as the terminus ante quern for the Indian colonisation in Malay
Peninsula. For, Fou-nan ( ancient Kamboja ) was colonised
by the Hindus in the first century A. D. s , and Champa, not
later than the second century A. D. 4 It, therefore, stands
to reason that the Malay Peninsula, which lies on the route
to these distant countries, must have been colonised at an
earlier date.

This a priori reasoning is also supported by traditional
accounts. The History of the Liang Dynasty describes a
country called Lang-ya-su ( or Lang-ga-su ) Svhich, the people
say, was established more than 400 years ago/ Now the king
of this country extols the emperor of China by saying, among
other things, that the precious Sanskrit was generally known
in his land. This leaves 110 doubt that it was a Hindu colony.
As the Chinese history, containing the account, refers to the
sixth century A. D., the traditional date of the foundation of
the colony would be more than four hundred years before that,
or, in other words, the second century A. D. It is generally
agreed that Lang-ya-su was situated in Malay Peninsula,

1. Levi (op. cit, pp. 5. ff.) was the first to point out that Takkola
was a regular Sanskrit word.

2. B. E. F. E. O., Vol. Ill, p. 291. A passage in Tsien-han-Shu
refers to trade between China and Huang-tche during 140-86 B.C. Huang,
tche has been identified with Abyssynia, Malay Peninsula and Kaficf in
South India. (T'oung Pao, 1912, p. 457 ; J. A. n-XIII (1919), p. 451 ;
J. A. n-XIV, p. 4 5 ; Tijd. Aard. Gen, Vol. 45, p. 589.)

3. Ibid, p. 290. 4. Champa R. C. Majumdar, p. 21,

91

though the exact localization of this colony is somewhat difficult.
The same place is referred to as Lang-kia-su by I-tsing and
Kama-laAka by Hiuen Tsang, and both enumerate it in a list
of countries between Sri-Ksetra (Prome ) and DvSrfivatl (Siam).
On this and other grounds, Pelliot held that it must be placed
either near the Isthmus of Kra, or in Tenasserim, though he
preferred the latter view. 1

Pelliot further held that this Lang-ya-su is the same as
Ling-ya-sseu-kia mentioned by Chau Ju-kua. M. Coedfcs has
proved that this latter is the same as Lenkasuka, mentioned in
the 'Keddah Annals' and Nilgara-krtagama, and is to be
identified with Gimong Jerai near Keddah. Coed&s further
showed that the same place is referred to, in the form Ilangafio-
gam, in the Tamil inscriptions of Rajcndra Cola, as one of the
vassal states of Srl-Vijaya conquered by him.

Coedfcs points out that Pclliot's identification of Lang-ya-su
or Lang-kia-su with Ling-ya-sseu-kia or Lenkasuka cannot be
upheld, as the latter is certainly near Keddah, whereas the
former is perhaps near Tenasserim, as Pelliot suggests. 9

Coedfcs, however, ignores the fact that Pelliot's identification
of Lang-ya-su with Tenasserim was a very hypothetical one,
based upon its resemblance with Nankasi, the old name of
Tenasserim. His main point was that it should be located in
Tenasserim or Malay Peninsula, because it is inserted between
Sri-Ksetra (Prome) and Dvaravati (Siam). As a matter of fact
he himself suggested the Isthmus of Kra as a probable
location, as, according to I-tsing, the Chinese pilgrims frequently
passed through Lang-kia-su on their way from China to India
or back. Even, therefore, if Lenkasuka is located near Keddah,
there does not seem to be uny insuperable objection in placing
Lang-ya-su or Lang-kia-su also in that locality. It must be
remembered that the kingdon, according to the History of the

1. B E. F. E. O., Vol. IV, pp. 406-8. The identification with
Tenasserim was also proposed by Huber (Ibid, p. 475).

2. B. E. F. E. O., Vol. XVIII. No. 6, pp. 11-13.

?2 MALAY PEtf INSULA

Liang Dynasty, 'was 30 days' pacing from east to west and 20
days' pacing from north to south/ It may, therefore, be
regarded as having comprised the northern part of the Malay
Peninsula extending as far south as Keddah. Rouffaer, however,
places both Lang-kia-su and Leiikasuka in Johore in the
southern part of the Malay Peninsula. 1 .

On the other hand, Ferrand has traced the name in an
Arabic work, in the form Lang-Saka, and has identified it with
Marco Polo's Lochac. On the strength of these and fresh
Chinese evidences, he has located Lang-kia-su on the eastern
coast of the Malay Peninsula, in the Isthmus of Ligor. 2 Indeed
the passage which Ferrand has quoted from Chavannes' 'Eeli-
gieux Eminents' (pp. 78 and 100), seems to leave no doubt on
the point. If, therefore, Coedfcs' identification of Leiikasuka
with Gunong Jerai be accepted as definitely proved, we must
hold that it was different from Lang-kia-su.

Coedfcs' view, however, rests almost solely on the Hikayat
Maron Mahawa&sa, a late work of no authentic character. It
is also quite possible that the name of an old site was given
to a newly founded city. Coedfcs has further relied upon the
popular traditions about Leiikasuka or Langkasuka, noted by
Blagden, and referred to hereafter. They may, however, be
equally explained by the supposition that an old site of
that name originally existed in the Isthmus of Ligor.

On the other hand, M. Sylvain Levi's identification of
MevilimbaAgam, mentioned in Rajendra Cola's inscription, with
KSma-lanka 8 of Hiuen Tsang, differentiates the latter from
Le&kasuka, mentioned separately as Ilangasogam in the same
inscription. This would support Coedfcs' view. Thus, while it is
difficult to identify definitely Lang-kia-su with Ling-ya-sseu-kia,
the former may be placed in the Isthmus of Ligor.

In any case we are fully justified in regarding Lang-kia-su
as an old Indian colony in Malay Peninsula, dating probably

1. B. K. I., 1931, pp. 89 ff.

2. J, A. H-XII (1918), pp. I34fl. 3, J. A., Vol. CCIII, p. 44.

SUVAKNADVlPA 73

from the second century A. D. Some interesting accounts of
this colony are preserved in Chinese annals. 1 The manners
and customs of its people, as described by the Chinese, show a
strong Indian element, modified, as in other colonies, by the
indigenous influence.

The Chinese annals give us some information about the
political condition of the country during the fifth and sixth
centuries A. D. The passage is thus translated by Schlegel :

"The people of this country say that their state was founded
more than 400 years ago ( A. D. 100 ), but that it got weaker
under its successors (sic) ; and as there was among the rela-
tions of the king one who was an excellent man, the people
turned towards him. When the king heard of this, he put him
into prison, but his chains snapped spontaneously. On this the
king thought him to be a supernatural being and dared not hurt
him any more, but only drove him from his territory, whence he
took refuge to India, and was married there to tho eldest
daughter ( of its king ). When on a sudden the king of Lang-ga
su died, the great officers called back the prince and made him
king. He died more than 20 years later, and was succeeded by
his son Bhagadato. In A. D. 515 he sent an envoy named
Aditya with a letter to the emperor of China.

"These embassies were repeated in A. D. 523 and in 531 and
then seem to have been dropped."*

Pelliot points out that there was a further embassy to China
in A. D. 5G8. 3

In course of a highly interesting and instructive philological
disquisition, M. Sylvain Levi* has demonstrated that KSma-
lanka, the name given to the colony by Hiuen Tsang, also occurs

i. The Chinese accounts have been translated by Groeneveldt
(Notes, pp. ion), and Schlegel (ToungPao, Serie I, Vol. IX., pp. 191-
200). 2. Schlegel (op. cit, pp. 192-3).

3, B. E. F. E. O. f Vol. IV, p. 405.

4. J. A., Vol. CCIII, pp. 38$ ; translated by Bagchi in "Pre-
Aryan and Pre-Dravidian in India*, pp. 104 ff.

10

74 MALAY PENINSULA

in Indian literature as Karmaranga. The MaSjuSrlmfllakalpa
(p. 332) "names the islands of Karmaranga with the island of
Cocoanuts (Nadlkera) and Vsrusaka (Baros, Sumatra) and the
islands of the Naked (Nicobar), Bali and Java as the regions
where the language is indistinct, without clearness, rude, and
abunding in the letter r" The same text again (p.648) mentions
Karmaranga with Harikela, Kamarupa, and Kalo&a (see below).
Bana, in his Haracarita, twice mentions the shield of Karma-
ranga, and his commentator Sankara remarks on the excellent
skins of the country. On this M. Levi remarks as follows :

"The reputation of the skins of Karmaranga appears to
explain Ptolemy's note on the population of the "Brigands"
"Lestai" which he locates exactly in the surroundings of
Karmaranga, on the southern shores of the great gulf, i.e., the
Gulf of Siam (VII, 2, 6 and 21) : "It is said that the natives of
the country of Brigands live like beasts, inhabit the caverns,
and that they have skin almost like that of hippopotami
impenetrable by arrows." The region had some centres of
population and even a port of commerce. "Samara(n)de,
Pagrasa, Pithonobaste which is a market, Akadra, Zabai which
is the city." It can be supposed that Samara (n)de is an
alteration of the name which has finally taken in Sanskrit the
alternate forms Carmaranga and Karmarafiga".

M. Levi further points out that India received from this
country the fruit which the Europeans call carambola and which
is named in Sanskrit, after the land of its origin, Karmaranga
(Bengali-KSmranga). Now the Malaya name of this fruit is
balimbing or belimbing, which has made its way in all parts of
South India along with the Sanskrit name. This has supplied
to M. Levi the key to the solution of a geographical problem.
Among the countries conquered by Rajcndra Cola occurs the
name Mevilimbangam which has not been hitherto identified.
Referring to the Malay name of the fruit, M. Levi remarks as
follows on the identity of Mevilimbangam : "Mevilimbangam
should, therefore, be analysed, in the inscription of Tanjore,
like Ms-Danialingam, Ma-Nakkavaram, as Me-Vilimbangam ; it

SUVAKNADVlPA 75

is clear that Vilimbangam is the Indian transcription of Malaya
belimbing which is the equivalent of Karmaraftga. The Indian
name of the fruit, derived from the name of the country, has
become in its turn the indication of the country itself ." Thus
Sylvain Lvi thinks that Mevilimbaiigam is but another name of
Kama-lanka=s Lang-kia-su.

As pointed out above, this view of Levi would mean that
Lang-kia-su was different from Langkasuka or Leiikasuka.
But even if it were so, "the two countries", as Levi remarks,
"are certainly very near each other".

As Blagden has pointed out 1 , "Langkasuka still lives
in the memory of the local Malays. It has developed into a
myth, being evidently the "spirit land" referred to as Lokon
Suka by the peasantry of the Patani states".

L6vi has also pointed out 8 that besides Karmaranga, the
Mafijusrlmulakalpa twice mentions also the name of Carma-
ranga (p. 206, 233), and he considers it only a variant of the same
name. Now the Brhat-Sairihita, in its catalogue of the peoples
of the south-east, combines Vrsa-Nalikera-Carmadvlpa. These
three names may be compared to Varusaka-Nadikera and
Karmaranga (or Carmaranga) of the ManjuSrlmnlakalpa referred
to above. Vrsa is possibly the same as Varusaka (Baros,
Sumatra), and Carmadvlpa may be presumed to be the same as
Cannaranga= Karmarafiga == Kama-laAka = modern Ligor.

Carmaranga is mentioned in MafijuSrimalakalpa with
Kalalavarapura (Kalafiahva p. 206 ; KalaSamukhya, p. 233).
KalaSapura is referred to as a city in Suvarnadvlpa in the
Kathasaritrsagara (54, 108). In the collection of Nepalese
miniatures studied by M. Foucher, the representation of
Bhagavat at KalaSavarapura immediately follows that of
Dipankara in Yavadvipa.

The New History of the T'ang Dynasty refers to a kingdom
called Ko-lo-cho-f en. Apparently this kingdom is again referred

i, J. R. A. S., 1906, p. 119. a. Op. cit., p, 106.

76 MALAY PENINSULA

to in the same text as Kia-lo-cho-fou and Kia-lo-cho-fo. All the
three forms correspond to KalaSapura. As to the location of
the kingdom, the Chinese accounts place it to the north of
Tou-ho-lo, which was to the north of P'an-p'an. Now Tou-ho-lo
has been identified with DvarSvati, in the lower valley of the
Menam river. If Kalafiapura is to be placed to the north of
DvSr&vatl, it must have been an inland region far away from
the sea, whereas, according to the story in the Kathasarit-sSgara,
the ship-wrecked merchant SamudraSura was cast adrift at
Kalafiapura, which was evidently on the sea-coast. Pelliot has
shown on good grounds that the directions given in the parti-
cular Chinese passage cannot be held to be quite accurate, and
he, therefore, proposes to substitute Vest' for 'north', for which
there is some independent authority. With this modification
of the text, KalaSapura may be placed to the north-west of Siam,
at the mouth of the Sittang river.

On the other hand, P'an-p'an corresponds to Bandon or
Ligor in Malay Peninsula, and, therefore, KalaSapura also may
be placed in the northern part of it. It may bo noted that
Kern amended the name KalaSapura to Kalapapura, Kalapa
being the name for Batavia. This amendment, however, is unten-
able in view of the forms of the name in the Chinese Text. 1

To the south-east of P'an-p'an, the Chinese locate a country
called Kala or Kora. It is evidently the same as Keddah, which
was the centre of trade and commerce between the cast and the
west and figures so prominently in later Arab accounts. Its
ambassadors visited China between 650 and 656 A.D., and the
following account 8 preserved in the New History of the
Tang Dynasty is apparently based on their report.

'This country is situated at the south-cast of P'an-p'an and
is also called Kora Fu-sa-ra. The king's family name is Sri
Pora and his personal name is Mi-si Po-ra. The walls of his
city are built with stones piled upon each other, whilst the

1. B. E. F. E. O., Vol. IV, p. 360.

2. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 121.

SUVARNADVIPA 77

watch-towers, the palace and other buildings are thatched with
straw. The country is divided into 24 districts.

"The soldiers use bows, arrows, swords, lances, and armour
of leather ; their banners are adorned with peacock feathers
and they fight mounted on elephants ; one division of the army
consists of a hundred of these, and each elephant is surrounded
by a hundred men. On the elephant's back is a cage containing
four men, armed with bows, arrows and lances.

"As taxes the people pay a little silver. There are no
silkworms, nor hemp or flax, nothing else but cotton. For
domestic animals they have numerous cows and a few ponies.

"It is their custom that only functionaries are allowed to tie
up their hair and to wrap a handkerchief round their heads."

Another Hindu state in Malay Peninsula, of which we get
some notice in the Chinese annals, is Pa-hoang (or Po-houang)
which has been identified by Schlegel with Pahang. The
following account is contained in the Nan-shi and the History of
the First Sung Dynasty. 1 .

"In A. D. 449 the king of the state of Pahang, named Sari-
Pala-Varma sent envoys who presented 41 different articles of
tribute. By imperial decree Emperor Wen named him "Bang
of the state of Pahang". In A. D. 451 and 456 he again sent his
great historian Da Napati to present a letter and offer products
of his country, when H. M. gave to Napati the title of "Awe-
inspiring general.

"In A.D. 459 its king offered red and white parrots. In A.D.
464 and 466 he sent again envoys to offer tribute, when Ming-ti
gave to his great historian Da Surawan as also to the former
grand historian, the Awe-inspiring general Da Napati, the title
of Dragon-horse Generals".

The kingdom of Pahang with its two state historians must
be regarded as a state with a high degree of civilisation. The

i. T'oung Pao, Serie I, vol. X (1899), pp. 398. Pelliot, however,
is doubtful about this identification of Po-houang with Pahang cf.
B. E. F. E. O., Vol. IV, p. 272.

78 MALAY PENINSULA

name of its king, ending in Varman, leaves no doubt that he was
a Hindu. It is evident from the above account that this Hindu
state in the eastern part of Malay Peninsula was in close and
intimate contact with the Chinese court during the fifth century
A.D.

There is, perhaps, reference to another old Hindu state in
Malay Peninsula, but the question is unfortunately not free
from doubt and difficulties. The Chinese annals of the Liang
and First Sung Dynasty refer to a kingdom called Kan-to-li or
Kin-to-li situated on an island in the southern sea 1 . Neither
T'ang nor later Sung annals refer to the kingdom, and it is not
till we come to the History of the Ming Dynasty that we come
across the name again. There it is definitely asserted that
Kan-to-li was the old name of San-bo-tsai.

Now, on the basis of the identification of San-bo-tsai with
Sri-Vijaya and Palembang, Groeneveldt, Schlegel, and other
scholars took Kan-to-li of the Liang and First Sung annals as
equivalent to Palembang. This view has been strongly criticised
by Gerini. Referring to the identification of Kan-to-li with
San-bo-tsai by the late Ming historians, he remarks : "This
late identification looks, I need not say, exceedingly suspicious,
especially in view of the fact that we have more than once caught
Chinese authors at fault in this sort of game ; and last, but not
least, because there was and still exists a Khanthuli or Kanturi
district on the east coast of the Malay Peninsula, which may
very well be the old Kan-to-li of First Sung and Liang periods."
The criticism of Gerini appears to be a valid one, and neither
Pelliot nor Ferraiid is willing to put much faith in the
identification proposed by later Chinese historians. But the
identification proposed by Gerini has not found general

i. For the Chinese references to Kan-to-li and discussions about
its identification cf. i, Groeneveldt Notes, pp. 60-62. 2. Ferrand
J. A. n-XIV (1919), pp. 238-41. 3- Gerini Researches, pp. 601-604.
4. Pelliot B. E. F. E. O., Vol. IV, pp. 401-2. 5. Schlegel T'oung
Pao, Serie II. Vol. II, pp. 122-4.

SUVAKNADVIPA 79

acceptance. Ferrand quotes a passage from the Hawiya of Ibn
Majid (dated A.D. 1462), which shows that Kandari was a
general appellation of the island of Sumatra. Ferrand suggests
that the Ming historians really conveyed an authentic informa-
tion, though their wordings are a little inaccurrte ; for, instead of
saying that San-bo-tsai was a part of Kan-to-li, they said that
San-bo-tsai was Kan-to-li.

Ferrand's view does not seem to be a very probable one, and
I have discussed the question in detail in Book II., Chapter
I., Appendix. I hold the view that it represents ancient Kadara,
a state in the Malay Peninsula.

The History of the Liang Dynasty gives us the following
information regarding Kan-to-li 1 .

"Its customs and manners are similar to those of Cambodge
and Champa. It produces clothes of variegated colour, cotton,
and excellent arcca-nuts.

In the reign of the emperor Hia-Wu (454-465 A.D.) fi of
the Sung Dynasty, the king of this country, Che-p'o-lo-iia-lien-to
(Srlvaranarendra) 3 sent a high official named Tchou-Lieou-to
(Rudra, the Indian) to present valuable articles of gold and
silver.

In the year 502, the king K'iu-t'an-sieou-pa-to-lo (Gautama
Subhadra) sent envoys to the emperor. Sometime after, the king
died and his son P'i-yc-pa-mo ( Vijaya Varman or Priyavarman ?)
succeeded him. In 519 the latter sent a high official called
Pi-yuan-pa-mo (Vi Varman) to the emperor with a letter.

1. The translation that follows is based upon Ferrand's summary
(op. cit). Groeneveldt's translation is somewhat defective.

2. The date is given as such by Cordier (La Chine, Vol. I. 335-36).
Groeneveldt gives the date as 454-464 (p 60); Krom gives 452-464 (p- 81) ;
while Ferrand gives 454-454 <P- 238), evidently a misprint for 454-464-
According to Pelliot the embassy was sent in A.D. 455 (op. cit., p. 197
f. n. 4).

3. Pelliot, op. cit., p. 197. f. n. 4. Schlegel restored the name as
"The Warrior (bald) king Narendra of the Sakya clan' (T'oung Pao, 11,11,
122. The name may be restored also as Hvara Narendra.

80 MALAY PENINSULA

In 520 he sent again an envoy to present as tribute products of
his country."

The History of the Chen dynasty refers to another embassy
from the kingdom in 563 AD. 1 .

Now, whatever we may think of the restoration of the
proper names, there cannot be any doubt that they were Indians.
The Chinese accounts also represent Buddhism as being held
in the highest veneration in the country, and, in spite of possible
exaggerations, there must have been some basis for this. Thus
we can hold that the Indian kingdom of Kan-to-li had been
established in Malay Peninsula by the fifth century A.D., and it
flourished at least from 455 to 563 A.D.

Actual remains of early Hindu civilisation in the Malay
Peninsula, though scanty, are not altogether lacking. Mr. Evans
has described the remains of a Hindu temple and a few stone
images at Sungai Batu Estate at the foot of Gunong Jerai
(Keddah Peak). Mr. Evans observes :

"Let us now consider what some of these specimens indicate.
They certainly show that some early inhabitants of Sungai Batu
were Hindus, and worshippers of Siva or related deities, for we
have obtained images of Durga, (?) Ganefia, the Nandi on
which he rides and of the Yoni, always associated with the
worship of Siva or with that of deities of Siva Group." 2

Unfortunately it is impossible to assign even any approximate
date either to the shrine or to the images. But the remains of
a brick-built Buddhist shrine, discovered in its neighbour-
hood, at Keddah, may be dated approximately in the
fourth or fifth century A.D. on the strength of a Sanskrit
inscription found in it. Similarly remnants of pillars, which
once adorned some Buddhist temples, have been found in the
northern part of Province Wellesley. These also may be dated
in the fourth or fifth century A.D. on the strength of inscriptions

1. Pelliot, op. cit.

2. I. H. N. Evans 'Papers on the Ethnology and Archaeology of
the Malay Peninsula' (Cambridge, 1927), pp. 115-6.

SUVAENADVlPA 81

engraved on them. Recently a gold ornament, bearing the
figure of Visnu on his Garuda, has been unearthed at Selinsing
(Perak), and also, in a hole left by the roots of a fallen tree, a
Cornelian seal engraved with the name of a Hindu prince
Sri Visnuvarman, in characters of the fifth century A.D. 1

Ruins of shrines exist in the region round Takua Pa ,
which has been identified by Gerini with Ptolemy's Takkola*.
At Phra No hill have been discovered the remains of a small
shrine, and a fine Visnu image, both probably dating from the
sixth or seventh century A.D. Tung Tuk, in the southern part
of Ko Khan island, was also an ancient settlement. The
potsherds unearthed there belong to varying ages, from the
fifth or sixth to eighth or ninth century A.D. There are also
remains of a temple which present great similarities to those in
Sungai Batu Estate referred to above. At Khau Phra Narai are
the remains of a small shrine, and three beautiful images of
Brahmanical gods which may be referred to the seventh or
eighth century A.D. A Tamil inscription, probably of the
eighth century A.D., has also been found in the same place.

Opposite Takua Pa, 011 the eastern coast, round the Bay of
Bandon, are the remains of early settlements, specially in the
three well-known sites Caiya, Nakhon Sri Thammarat, and Vieng
Sra. The temples and images of these places may be of some-
what later date, but the inscriptions found at Ligor and Takua
Pa, and the Sanskrit inscription on a pillar at Caiya show that
these settlements could not be later than the fourth or fifth
century A.D.

1. J. Mai. Br. R. A. S., 1932, p. 5- Cf. J. F. M. S. M., Vol. XV, pt.
3, pp. 89 ft, 1 10 ff. Dr. Chhabra, in J. A. S. B, L., Vol. x, pp. 27-28, where
the seal is reproduced, refers the characters of the seal to eighth century
A. D. ; but this is very doubtful. For an account of the early Indian
settlement near Kuala Selensing, cf. 'A History of Perak' by
R. O. Winstedt and R. J. Wilkinson, p. 4.

2. I. A. L., Vol. IX, pp, 8ff. 3. Gerini Researches, pp. 86ff.
11

82 MALAY PENINSULA

More interesting light is thrown upon the Indian colonisation
in Malay Peninsula by an analysis of the large number of
inscriptions which have been discovered in different parts of the
country. These inscriptions, of which a detailed account is
given in an appendix to this chapter, are mostly too fragmentary
to yield any complete sense, but they lead to very important
conclusions. They are written in Sanskrit and in Indian
alphabets of about the fourth or fifth century A.D. Two of
them distinctly refer to a Buddhist creed and thus prove the
spread of Buddhism in that region. As to the distribution of
the inscriptions, seven of them were found at Tokoon in the
centre of the Province Wellesley ; four of them, in the northern
part of the same province ; one at Kcddah ; one at Takua Pa ;
five at Ligor ; and two at Caiya. On the whole, therefore, these
inscriptions clearly testify to the fact that the Indians had
established colonies in the northern, western and the eastern
sides of the Malay Peninsula by at least fourth and fifth
centuries A.D. The palaeography of these inscriptions shows
that the colonists belonged to both northern and southern India.

One of these inscriptions refers to "the captain (Mahanavika
lit. great sailor) Buddhagupta, an inhabitant of Rakta-mrttika".
Kern identified Rakta-mrttika (red earth) with a kingdom
called Chih-tu by the Chinese, as the latter meant red earth'.
Now this Chih-tu is usually located in Siam or its neighbourhood,
although there are grave difficulties in this identification 1 .
Apart from this difficulty, Krorn has very pertinently asked the
question that if Buddhagupta belonged to a locality in Siam or
its neighbourhood, why should he come to northern part of
Province Wellesley to commemorate his gifts. It is more in the
fitness of things, says Krom, that Rakta-mrttika should be
sought for in India 9 . This view seems to be eminently just.
Now, in course of his description of Karnasuvarna, the famous
capital of Gauda (Bengal) under SaSanka, Hiuen Tsang refers

1. B. E. F. E. O., Vol. IV, p. 231, f.n. 2.

2. Krom* Geschiedenis, p. 73.

SUVAKNADVlPA 83

to a magnificent Buddhist monastery near it. "It is called by
him in some texts Lo-to-wei-chih, explained as meaning "Red
clay", and Julien restores the original as Raktaviti. But the
correct reading is Lo-to-mo-chih, that is Raktamrta, in Pftli
Ratta-mattika, which means "Red clay" 1 . This site has been
identified with a place still called Rangiiinati (Red clay) 12 miles
south of Murshidabad 2 . Thus Rakta-mrttika, the native
place of Buddhagupta, may be identified with the place,
containing the famous monastery near the old capital of Bengal,
which is still called by its old name. The fact that it was near
the river Bhagirathl, which served as the main channel of ocean
trade between Bengal and the Far East, is not altogether without
significance in respect of the proposed identification. It may be
noted in conclusion that the stone slab containing this inscription
has in the centre a representation, in outline, of a stftpa, with
seven umbrellas 3 .

The report published by M. Lajonquiere 4 about the work
of the Archaeological Mission in Malay Peninsula contains
interesting observations regarding Hindu colonisation in tliis
land. His views, based on a study of the actual archaeological
finds, may be summed up as follows :

'The colonies were large in number and situated in widely
remote centres, such as Chumphon, Caiya, the valley of the
river Bandon, Nakhon Sri Dhammarat (Ligor), Yala (near

1. Walters On Yuan Chwang, Vol. II, p. 192.

2. Cunningham Ancient Geography Edited by S. N. Majumdar,
p 733* Attention may be drawn in this connection to a place called
Rhadamarkotta by Ptolemy. Saint Martin has identified this with
Rangamati, an ancient capital, situated on the western bank of lower
Brahmaputra, and now called Udepur. Yule, who agrees with this
identification, gives, as the Sanskrit form of the name of the place,
Rangamrtika. Wilford, however, differs from this view and gives an
altogether different version of the text (M'Crindle Ptolemy, p. 229).

3. J. A. S. B., Vol. IV, PL III.

4. B. C. A. L, 1909, pp. 184-5.

84 MALAY PENINSULA

Patani), and Selensing (in Pahang) on the eastern coast ; and
Malacca, Province Wellesley, Takua Pa, and the common delta
of the rivers Lanya and Tenasserim, on the western.

'The most important of these was unquestionably that of
Nakhon Sri Dhammarat (Ligor). It established a sort of
hegemony over the whole of the centre of the peninsula, to
which belonged the colonies of Pathalung, Yala Trang, and the
upper valley of the Bandon river. It was an essentially
Buddhist colony which probably built the great stupa of Nakhon
Sri Dhammarat and part of the fifty temples which surrounded
it. The mass of terra-cotta votive tablets in the caves inhabited
by the Buddhists, of which a few specimens still exist, also
belonged to this colony. The inscriptions are unfortunately
very rare, and only three have been discovered, belonging to the
fourth or fifth century A.D. A little to the north was the
colony of Caiya, which appears to have been at first Brahmanical,
and then Buddhist.

'These two groups of colonies were mainly agriculturalists.
The others which occupied Selensing, Panga, Puket, and Takua
Pa, prospered by the exploitation of tin and gold-mines. They
have left comparatively fewor traces of their civilisation, but
the pits they dug in the mine-fields arc still clearly distinguished
from later ones by a special technique 1 . It is difficult
to assign any date to these colonies, and some of them
may be later than the seventh century A.D. But the inscrip-
tions, referred to above, certainly indicate that the beginnings of
most of them must be referred to an earlier date, though many
of the actual archaeological remains undoubtedly belong to a
later period/

Recently Dr. H. G. Quaritch Wales has made an intensive
study of a few ancient sites, and has arrived at very important
and interesting conclusions regarding the routes along which
Indian colonists, and with them Indian culture, spread in Malay
Peninsula. I summarise below his main conclusions, as far

i, Ibid, p, 234.

StJVARNADVlPA 85

as possible in his own words, referring the reader for a more
detailed study to the very illuminating article itself. 1

'The Indian pioneers first settled in the Takua Pa region.
Takua Pa harbour then formed one of the finest anchorages on
the west coast and was thus an encouragement for traders to
call and succeeding waves of Indians to settle. The early
settlers were probably attracted by tin which abounds in this
part of the peninsula. However it may be with regard to
mining, the Indians certainly also formed trading and agricul-
tural communities, and, though they brought their religion with
them, were also sponsors of a considerable secular civilization.

'When these colonists wanted to expand beyond the
somewhat narrow quarters of the west coast valleys, they
followed the two courses open to them. Some braved the
waters of the Straits of Malacca, then swarming with Malay
pirates, but others, perhaps the majority, followed the
comparatively safe route across country peopled by milder
natives, to the eastern coast of the peninsula. For it is
only at this latitude that two rivers run approximately cast
and west respectively from the watershed, being separated
at their sources by only five miles.

'Once they had reached the eastern side of the watershed,
the colonists were in a broad fertile region, watered by the
Girirastra and Luong rivers. The eastern settlements seem
to have been situated eccentrically with regard to the Bay
of Bandon, the finest harbour on the east coast, which
provided an admirable base for further adventuring across
the seas. To judge by the extant archaeological remains, the
chief Indian colonies on the east coast were at Wieng Sra,
Caiya, and Nakhon Sri Thammarat.

'There are other possible routes. The two in the north,
the Mergui-Pracuab crossing and the well-known Kra route,
were used by Europeans and others in later centuries. But
neither of them appears to have been suitable for early

i f LA. L,, Vol. IX, No. I, pp. 1-31.

86 MALAY PENINSULA

colonial expansion, because neither offers on the east coast
large areas of well-watered territory and fine harbours, and
not the slightest sign of Indian remains has been noticed on
either route.

'The two southern routes pass from Trang on the west
coast respectively to Nakhon Sri Thammarat and Patalung.
There are no early remains at Trang, but, in the caves along
both these routes, there were formerly large number of votive
tablets, stamped with figures of Mahayanist Bodhisatvas, and
N&garl Inscriptions, dating from tenth century or possibly
earlier. It would appear, therefore, that these two routes
were chiefly used in later times during the Sailcndra period.

'On the whole the available evidence justifies the
assumption that the region around the Bay of Bandon was
a cradle of Further Eastern culture, inspired by waves of
Indian influence spreading across the route from Takua Pa.
There is a strong persistent local tradition in favour of an
early migration of Indians across the route from the west.
At the same time persons of an Indian cast of features
are common on the west coast near Takua Pa, while colonies
of Brahmans of Indian descent survive at Nakhon Sri
Thammarat and Patalung, and trace the arrival of their
ancestors from India by an overland route across the Malay
Peninsula. According to Liang-Shu, it was through the country
of P'an-p'an, identified with the region round the Bay of
Bandon, that the Indianisation of Fu-Nan was completed
by the second Kaundinya about the end of the fourth century
A.D. The archaeological evidence shows the survival around
the Bay of Bandon of a primitive non-specialized type of
Indian colonial architecture, having basic features in common
with the earlier Pre-Khmer, Cham, and Indo-Javancse
buildings. Moreover, the early Indian colonial architecture
at Caiya and Nakhon Sri Thammarat is supported by the
existence in the same latitude of the remains of almost
purely Indian edifices from which it could have evolved ;

SUVARNADVIPA 87

while the sculptures found in this trans-peninsular zone of
territory include purely, or almost purely, Indian prototypes,
which could well have served as inspiration to the development
of local forms in an Indo-nesian environment/

The above clearly sums up the views of Dr H. G. Q. Wales
regarding the role played by the region round the Bay of
Bandon in spreading Indian culture across the sea to
Cambodia, Annam, Sumatra, and Java, not to speak of less
important Indian colonies. He is not, however, dogmatic.
"But while" says he, "I stress the importance of this region
as a cradle of Further Eastern culture, / do not wish to
minimise Hie part played by other land routes that remain
to be investigated, nor the sea route by which Indian influences
must have penetrated to the cast from rcry early times"

It is needless to add that the hypothesis of Dr H. G. Q.
Wales opens up an interesting field of study, and invests
the early history and culture of the Hindu colonies in Malay
Peninsula with a special degree of importance.

APPENDIX

EARLY INSCRIPTIONS IN THE MALAY

PENINSULA ( UP TO THE FIFTH

CENTURY A.D. )

Nos. 1-7. "A group of seven inscriptions now extant on
the rather weather-worn and sloping side of a granite rock at
a place named Tokoon, lying near to the centre of the province
(Wellesley) or almost directly east of Penang Town." 1

Mr. Laidlay's reading of these inscriptions need not be
seriously considered. But no attempt has since been made
to decipher them. It seems to be impossible to give a reading
of the whole inscription assuming that the seven fragments
form a continuous inscription but several letters are quite clear.
In No. 1, the first two letters are certainly sarvva and the next
three may be conjecturally read as ar(a)ma. In No. 2, the
first six letters are quite clear and may be read as "prathame
vayasi." The two letters that follow I doubtfully read as
srame. In the second line the word 'rajena* may be noted,
but the short stroke before V is difficult to interpret. No. 4
is certainly "jayatu." Nos. 3,5,6, and 7 do dot yield much that
can be regarded as useful.

Now, although the inscription does not yield any definite
meaning, several important conclusions can be deduced from

i. The inscriptions Nos. 1-12 were discovered by Lieut. Col.
James Low, and a short account of them was published by
Mr. J. W. Laidlay in J. A. S. B., 1848, Part II, pp. 62 ff., pi. IV . 1849,
Part I, p. 247, pi. X. Lt. Col. Low refers to another inscription on the
four sides of a brazen ornamented dish, but no facsimile is published.
Mr. Laidlay read it as Savita (Sam vat ?) 1399. He also notices a
brick with two early letters (Jaya ?).

SUVARNADVIPA 89

it. In the first place, the language is Sanskrit and not Pali.

This is evident from 'sarwa' in No. 1 and "prathame vayasi"
in No. 2. Secondly, the few letters, that may be read with
certainty, place the inscription not later than the fourth
century A. D. It is to be noted in this connection that the
peculiar characteristics of South Indian alphabet are not very
conspicuous in this record. The lower end of the vertical in k
shows a slight bend to the left, but a, r, and medial u do not
show any upward bend.

Nos. 8-11. A group of four inscriptions discovered in the
northern part of the Province Welleslcy, and incised on a
piece of stone which Col. Low believes to be the "upper
portion of one of those pillars which are set up in the areas of
Buddhist temples." These inscriptions have been studied
by Prinsep 1 , Dr. R. L. Mitra 2 , Dr. Kern 8 , and lately by
Mr. B. Ch. Chhabra.*

The first of these, No. 8, may be definitely read as "Mahana-
vika-Buddhaguptasya rakta-mrttika(a)vas[/at*#as|/a] (?)." No. 9
has been read by Kern as "Sarwena prakarena sarvvasmat

sarwatha sarwa siddhayanasanna." Mr. Chhabra reads the

third word as 'sarvvasmin', and the last word as "Siddhayat (r)
a (h) santu." Mr. Chhabra thinks that No. 9 is a continuation
of No. 8, and the passage contains a prayer for the successful
voyage of Buddhagupta.

No. 10. may be read as "ajnSnacclyate karmma janmanat
karmma karana...jnanan-na ciyate (?)"

As has been pointed out by Dr. Kern, this formula is also
found in the Keddah Ins. (No. 12 below).

No. 11 I read doubtfully as "...fiirasapragipata".

Here, again, the sense of the inscription as a whole (assuming
the four to be parts of one inscription) is obscure ; but it
seems to record a gift by, and a prayer for the successful voyage

i. J.A.S.B., Vol. IV. 2. J.A.S.B. Vol. XVII, Part II, p. 71.

3. V. G., Vol. Ill, pp. 255 ff. 4- J. A. S. B. L., Vol. I, pp. 14 ff.
12

90 APPENDIX

of, the great sailor ( captain ? ) Buddhagupta, an inhabitant
of Raktamrttika. The language is Sanskrit, and the characters
seem to belong to the fifth century A. D. The characteristics
of South Indian alphabets are to be noted in the upward bend of
the vertical stroke in /r, r 9 a and medial u.

No. 12. An inscription of four lines on a slab of stone "lying
under the centre of the foundation of a ruin of an ancient
brick building in Keddah. It has been deciphered by Mr.
Laidlay and Dr. Kern. The latter reads it a,s follows :

L. 1. Ye dharma hetuprabhava tesa(ri) hetu(m) tathagato
(hyavadat) ,

L. 2. Tesa(n) ca yo nirodha cva(m) vac)i mahaSramana(h) I

L. 3. Ajfianac=clyate karma janmamvli karma karanam

L. 4. Jnanan=na kriyate karjttiiia karmmabhava(n)=na
jayate II /

As has been noticed already, Ahe second verse (11. 3-4) of this
inscription is repeated in No./10 above.

The inscription may bo referred to the fourth or the fifth
century A.D. on palseographic grounds. There are no traces of
the peculiar characteristics of South Indian alphabets.

No. 13 l . Takua Pa Inscription.

This has not been deciphered yet, but the characters are of
early Indian type and show no traces of the chardofeiistics of
South Indian alphabet 8 .

Nos. 14-16. Inscriptions, discovered at Ligor, of not later
than the fifth century A.D. These have not been edited yet,
but the characters resemble those of Takua Pa (No. 13)

No. 17. An inscription from Caiya engraved on a pillar.
It is written in Sanskrit with characters belonging to the fourth
or fifth century A.D.

1. The Inscriptions Nos. 13-17 are published in B.C.A.I., 1910,
pp. 147 ff. A few other inscriptions, noted therein, are omitted, as they
are either doubtful or too fragmentary.

2. The facsimile of the inscription has been published in B.C.A.I.,
1910, pi. XIII ; cf. also Gerini, J. R. A. S. 1904 (p. 242).

Chapter VI

EARLY HINDU COLONISATION IN JAVA

The island of Java is one of the largest of what are
usually known as the Sunda islands, in the Malay Archipelago.
It lies between 105-12'-40" and lU-35'-38* East Longitude
and S'-SS'-Si* and 8-46'-46" South Latitude. It is long but
narrow, running nearly east and west with a slight inclination
to the south. Its length is about 022 miles, while its breadth
varies from 55 to 121 miles. The area of Java, including
Madura and adjacent islands, is about 51,000 sq. miles. Java
is bounded on the north by the shallow Java Sea which
separates it from Borneo. On the south is the deep Indian
ocean, stretching as far as the Antarctic Pole without a single
patch of land. On the east a narrow strait, about two miles
broad, separates it from the island of Bali. To the north-west
is the Sunda Strait separating Java from Sumatra. The
strait, at the narrowest, is only 14 miles wide, its extreme
breadth being nearly 50 miles. There are many islands
to the north of Java. Madura, the chief among them, is separated
by a strait which, in some places, is less than a mile, and
is regarded as a part of Java for all practical purposes. Among
other islands may be mentioned the Thousand Islands, north of
Batavia, and the Karimon Java Archipelago (27 islands) to
the north of Semarang. Java has a long coast-line and many
bays on the northern and western sides ; but as none of them
deeply penetrates into the land, there are no good harbours.
The only exception is the excellent harbour of Surabaya,
at the mouth of the Brantas river and situated between the
mainland and Madura. But there are good anchoring grounds
all along the northern coast, and as the sea is generally smooth,
hurricanes practically unknown, a number of ports

92 HINDU COLONISATION IN JAVA

developed on the northern coast, and served the purpose of
commerce quite well. There are only two harbours Chilachap
and Pachitan on the southern coast, which is exposed to the
open sea, with a heavy and dangerous surge rolling 011 it.

An uninterrupted range of mountains, volcanic in character,
runs along the whole length of the island through its centre.
The peaks of this mountain-range vary in height between 4000
and 12000 ft. No less than 46 of them are volcanoes, and about
20 are yet in a more or less active state. The craters of the
volcanoes are sometimes of enormous size, the diameter of
the largest, at Tenger, being full three miles. Another low
range of mountains, nowhere more than 3000 ft. high, runs
along the southern shore.

There are innumerable rivers in Java, but, with two
exceptions, they are small and not navigable beyond a short
distance ; besides, they are difficult of entrance on account of
the sand or mud-bars at their mouths. The two exceptions
are the Solo and Brantas rivers. Both of them rise in the low
range of mountains in the south, and, after a long and tortuous
course, empty themselves into the narrow strait between Java
and Madura. The river Brantas is also known as the Surabaya
river from the name of the famous harbour at its mouth.
The Solo river is so called from the city of Surakerta
(native name Solo) by which it passes. As a rule the rivers
in Java are known by the name of the principal city on their
banks.

Although the rivers of Java are mostly useless for purposes
of navigation and commerce, they are excellently adapted for
irrigation. Java is one of the most fertile countries in the
whole world. Any one who travels in the country cannot fail
to be charmed by its evergreen fields, meadows, and hills,
with traces of abundant harvest everywhere around him.
"Its villages and even its towns are, in a great measure,
concealed from view, by the luxuriant abundance and perpetual
verdure of its vegetation". Indeed, a railway journey from

SUVABNADVlPA 93

Batavia to Surabaya is apt to give rise to the impression that
the traveller is passing through a well-laid garden.

There are five or six extensive plains in Java, such as those
of Bandong, Surakerta, Madiun, Kediri, Malang, Bandavasa,
and Pugar. These are all girded by high mountains on the
east and on the west and irrigated by the streams flowing from
them. The valleys in Java are numerous, and some of them,
e.g., that of Kedu, are fairly large and very fertile.

Java has a rich flora, and 'hardly any similar area in the
world has one of richer variety'. It produces excellent timber,
the most important of which is the famous teak-wood. About
40% of the soil in Java is under cultivation, the chief products
of agriculture being rice, sugar, cinchona, coffee, tobacco, tea,
indigo etc. Java is very poor in mineral products. There is
hardly any gold or silver, and only small quantities of coal,
sulphur, and manganese. The discovery of petroleum in
1863 has added an important industry. The most well-known
industry of Java to-day is the Batik or dyeing of cotton cloth
with coloured designs.

Both geographically and historically, Java falls into three
main divisions. Of the sixteen Residencies, or modern
administrative divisions of Java, those of Bantam, Batavia,
Cheribon, and the Preangers constitute Western Java. Central
Java comprises the Residencies of Pekalongan, Samarang,
Banjumas, Kedu, Jogyakerta, Surakerta, Rembang, and Madiun.
The remaining Residencies, vix,., Surabaya, Kediri, Pasuruhan
and Besuki belong to Eastern Java.

Java is the most thickly populated country in the Archi-
pelago. The population of Java and Madura numbers over
thirty millions of people. Leaving asid6 the comparatively
insignificant number of foreigners (293,100 Chinese, 19,148
Arabs, 2,840 Oriental foreigners, and 64,917 Europeans and
Eurasians), the rest may be broadly divided into three classes,
all of Malayan stock. These are Sundanese on the western,
the Madurese in Madura and the eastern part of Java, and

94 HINDU COLONISATION IN JAVA

the Javanese proper in the middle. As a matter of fact the
western part of the island of Java is known to the natives as
Sunda. The Sundanesc, numbering about three millions, have
their head-quarters in the Residency of the Prcangers, but they
are also to be found in the Residencies of Batavia and Cheribon.
The Madurese, more than three millions in number, are almost
the sole inhabitants of the island of Madura and Besuki, the
eastern-most district of Java, and occur in large numbers also
in the neighbouring district of Pasuruhan. The remaining
part of Java, from Cheribon to Surabaya, is inhabited by the
Javanese proper. All the three races appear to have a common
origin. The Javanese, though less sturdy than their neighbours,
are more refined in manners and civilization, and are inspired
by the memories of a glorious past, dating back to the period
when the Hindu colonists imparted to them the elements of a
higher culture and civilization 1 .

The Hindu colonization of Java is by far the most out-
standing event in the early history of that island. Unfortunately,
the first stages of this colonization are hidden from our view,
and arc only echoed in a number of traditions current among
the people in a later age. Sir Stamford Raffles has referred to
some of these in his well-known History of Java 9 . Many of
these legends associate the original colonists and their leader
Aji Saka with the heroes of the Mah&bhfirata ruling at Astina,
i.e., HastinSpura, as their capital 3 . A modified version of
these legends takes the descendants of these princes to Gujrat,
whence a further wave of emigration to Java took place at a
later date *.

1. This introductory account of Java is based mainly on the
English translation of "Cabaton Java, Sumatra, and the other islands
of the Dutch East Indies" ( T. Fisher Unwin, London, 1911 ).

2. Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles The History of Java'.
(2nd Ed., London, 1830), Vol. II, pp. 69 ff.

3. Ibid., p. 71.

4. Ibid,, pp. 87 ff.

SUVARNADVlPA 95

Another cycle of legends gives the credit for the
colonization of Java to the people of Kalinga x . In one of
them we read that "twenty thousand families were sent to
Java by the prince of Kling. These people prospered and
multiplied. They continued, however, in un uncivilized
state till the year 289 ( of Javanese era i.e. Saka era ) when
the almighty blessed them with a prince, named Kano."
After describing three generations of kings, who ruled for
a total period of four hundred years, the story continues :
"Another principality, named Astina, sprang up at this time,
and was ruled by a prince called Pula Sara, who was succeeded
by his son Abiasa, who was again succeeded by his son Pandu
Deva Natha ; the reigns of the last three princes together
amounting to ono hundred years. Then succeeded Jaya
Baya himself (by whom this account is supposed to be written)
who removed the seat of government from Astina to Kediri" *

In the last part of the above story, there is no difficulty in
recognising the names of epic heroes like ParaSara (Pula Sara),
Vyasa (Abiasa), and Pandu. Thus the two different cycles of
legends are combined in one, and they are connected with
historical period by Jaya Baya, i.e., Jayabhaya, the famous king
of Java, who flourished in the twelfth century A.D., and was the
patron of the famous poem, Bharata-yuddha.

The legends naturally give great prominence to Aji Saka,
who first civilized and gave the name Yava to the island,
which was then called Nusa Kendang, and peopled by a race
of Basaksa (Raksasas of Indian legends). Aji Saka is described
as the chief minister of a Pandava king ruling at Astina
(Hastinapura), and is said to have landed in Java in the first
year of Javan era 3 ( i. e. Saka era). In some accounts,
however, "it is stated, that the religion and arts of India were
first introduced into Java by a Brahmin named Tritresta, who
with numerous followers landed on Java, and established the

I. Ibid., pp. 73 ff,, 78 ff. 2. Ibid., pp. 73-4.

3. Ibid., p. 71.

96 HINDU COLONISATION IN JAVA

era, in consequence of which he is considered the same
with Aji Saka." l .

"The accounts of the real character of Aji Saka", observes
Raffles, "are various. Some represent him as a great and
powerful prince, who established an extensive colony on Java,
which a pestilence afterwards obliged him to withdraw ;
whilst others consider him as a saint and deity, and believe
that on his voyage to Java he sailed over mountains, islands,
and continents. Most, however, agree in attributing to him
the first introduction of letters, government, and religion ; the
only trace of anterior civilization being a tradition, that before
his time there existed a judicial code, under the title of sun
and moon... This code Aji Saka is represented to have reformed;
and an abstract collection of ordinances, said to have been
made from his instructions, is believed to have been in use as
late as the time of Janggala, and even of Majapahit." a .

It is not necessary to refer to the different versions of
these legends which may be consulted in the pages of Raffles'
monumental work. It will appear from what has been said
above, that very little importance can be attached to these
stories beyond the fact, that they contain a vague reminiscence
of what is undoubtedly a historical fact, viz., the colonization
of Java by the Indians. It would be risky, without further
evidence, even to deduce that Kalinga and Gujarat formed the
main centres of Indian emigration to Java. But, as we shall
see later, the Hindus from Kalinga and the Muhammadans
from Gujarat may be regarded, on satisfactory grounds, to
have taken the leading part in establishing respectively the
Hindu and Muhammadan culture in Java. This probably
explains the frequent reference to these two places in the
legends, while the prominence given to the heroes of the Maha-
bharata should undoubtedly be attributed to the popularity of
that great epic poem in Java.

i. Ibid., p. vs- 2 * Ibid ' P- 72i

SUVARNADVIPA 97

As to the time when Java emerged from primitive barbarism,
we have a tradition preserved in the Chinese work Hsing-
ch'a Sheng-lan ( 1436 A. D. ) written by Fei Hsin. "From old
records preserved in this county ( i. e. Java)", says this author,
"I learnt that this event took place during the Han dynasty,
1376 years before the present year, the 7th of Hsuan-te of our
great Ming Dynasty ( i. e. A. D. 1432 )". l

This would take us to the year 56 A. D. But the History
of the Ming Dynasty introduces an element of doubt and
confusion. Referring to envoys from Java, it says : "When
they brought tribute in the year 1432, they presented a letter
stating that their kingdom had been founded 1376 years
before, that is in the first year of the period Yuan-k'ang of the
emperor Hsiian of the Han dynasty ( B. C. 65 )." a . As
Groenevcldt has remarked, there is a discrepancy in the above
account which it is difficult to explain ; for, counting back 1376
years before 1432, we arrive at 56 A. D., while the Chinese
writer calculates back to 65 B. C. s "We must, therefore,
hold that either one of the two figures 1376 and 1432, or the
Chinese calculation, is wrong. But in view of Fei Hsin's
statement, the latter seems to be more probable. Thus we may
take the Javanese tradition, as handed down by the Chinese, to
refer the beginning of the Hindu civilisation to A. D. 56., i. e.
only 22 years before the beginning of the Javanese era
synchronising with the traditional date of Aji Saka.

It may be noted here that, according to tradition, the two
islands of Bali and Madura originally formed a part of Java, and
were only separated from it in the year 202. The formation
of Madura as a separate island is referred to in Nagara
Kj-tagama, * while a Balinese tradition refers to the separation
of Bali, 5 both the events being dated in the self-same year.

1. T'oung Pao, Vol. XVI (1915), pp. 246-7, f. n. i.

2. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 39.

3. Ibid., f. n. 4. 4. Nag, Kr., 15,2.
$. Not. Bat. Gen., Vol, 62 (1923)1 PP. 297 ff-

98 HINDU COLONISATION IN JAVA

These traditions have an indirect bearing on the question at
issue. For, if we believe in them, we must hold that, at least
in Eastern Java, a civilised community existed before the third
century A. D. ; for, otherwise, such an event would not have
been recorded or remembered with any such definiteness. But
it is equally or, perhaps, more likely that the tradition is a late
fabrication.

But apart from these legends and traditions, there are more
reliable evidences to show that India and Java must have
come into contact from a very early period. We have already
discussed above the passage in the Raniayana which refers to
Java. But the earliest reference to the island by an authority
of known date is that by Ptolemy. He definitely mentions
Java under the name of labadiou or Sabadiou. As he explains
it as the Island of Barley/ the name is obviously a transcrip-
tion of Sanskrit Yuuadclpa. Ptolemy gives the following
information about it : "It is said to be of extraordinary
fertility and to produce very much gold, and to have its capital
called Argyre (Silver-Town) in the extreme west of it" l .

The obvious identification of Ptolemy's labadiou (=Yava-
dvlpa) with Java has been questioned by some authorities. a
They point out that the island of Sumatra, or at least a part of
it, was also known as Java. Starting from this basis they
argue as follows : 'Now if we have to make a choice between
Java and Sumatra, the latter is undoubtedly to be preferred
on general grounds, for it being nearer to India must have
been better known to the Indians, who could not have reached
Java without passing by this great island, and therefore being
first acquainted with it. This view is further strengthened
by the consideration that Ptolemy's labadiou is said to
"produce very much gold". Java, as a matter of fact, has

1. M'Crindle's Ptolemy, p. 239. Poerbatjaraka locates Argyre
at Dieng ( T. B. G., Vol. 69, p. 169. )

2. Cf. Krom Geschiedenis, p. 55. Ferrand in J. A. n-XX
(1922), pp. 175 **

SUVARNADVIPA 99

hardly any gold at all, but Sumatra, which even now produces
gold, was named Suvarnadvlpa for that very reason/

A little reflection will, however, show that these arguments
are really not as formidable as they appear to be. Sumatra
was called Java, and never Yava, but Ptolemy's 'Barley-island'
shows that undoubtedly the latter was meant, and this has all
along been the recognised name of the island of Java.
Secondly, while it is true that Java does not produce gold,
it is equally true that from early times it has enjoyed the
reputation of being a gold-producing country. In an inscription 1
of the eighth century A. D. found in Java itself, the country
is referred to as Yavadvlpa and praised for its richness in
gold-mines. Whether this reputation was well-deserved
or not, it certainly explains Ptolemy's reference to the
abundance of gold in Java, as his account must have been
based on general popular notions rather than any geological
examination of the soil of Java. The fact seems to be that,
although Java did not produce gold, it imported large
quantities of the metal, and worked them into ornaments and
articles of luxury. The countries to which these were exported
naturally regarded Java as rich in gold. But whether this
explanation be correct or not, we have a sufficient explanation
of Ptolemy's reference to gold in the inscription referred to
above.

We may thus accept the view that Ptolemy knew the
island of Java under its Hindu name. His account of Java,
as quoted above, together with the Latitude of its chief town
given by him, certainly shows that he possessed a somewhat
detailed knowledge of the place.

We may thus hold that by the second century A. D. there
was a growing and familiar intercourse between India on the
one side and Java and neighbouring islands on the other. But
neither the Indian literature nor the account of Ptolemy
enables us to say positively that the Indians had already

I. Cangal Inscription, verse 7. Kern. V. G. t Vol. VII, p. Ji8,

100 HINDU COLONISATION IN JAVA

colonised the island of Java by the second century A. D.
The use of a Hindu name for Java is the only ground for
such supposition, but it may be easily explained by the very
natural assumption that that was the name given by Hindu
visitors or traders to Java, and there is nothing to indicate that
Java was called by that name by its own people. It is true that
Ptolemy used that name, but like other informations about the
island, Ptolemy might have also got the name itself from Hindu
sources.

Fortunately the Chinese annals 1 , throw more light on
this question. In Heu-Han-Shu, reference is made to an
embassy sent to China in 132 A. D. by Tiao-Pien, king of
Ye-Tiao. Pelliot long ago recognised the identity of Ye-Tiao
with Yavadvlpa, and Ferraiid has explained the name of the
king as a Chinese rendering of Sanskrit Devavarman*. If
the conclusion of these eminent sinologists can be relied upon,
both the country and its king had Indian names, and no doubt
can then possibly remain about the fact, that by 132 A. D. the
Hindus had not only colonised the island of Java, but had also
established their political authority there on a firm footing.
Further, the Chinese evidence to the effect that the island
of Java was known by the name Yavadvlpa in the
year 132 A. D., certainly supports the view that 'labadiou' of
Ptolemy, who wrote shortly afterwards, refers to Java and not
to Sumatra.

Now, according to the Chinese authority, king Devavarman
sent his ambassador to the Chinese court for offering tributes.
The envoy was apparently well received by the emperor, for
he sent, as presents to the Javanese king, a golden seal and a
violet ribbon. The Chinese historians always represent their
sovereign as the suzerain of the world, and any friendly offering,
or exchange of produce for commercial purposes, is regarded

i. Cf. Pelliot B. E. F. E. O., Vol. IV. (1904), p. 266. Ferrand
'Ye-Tiao, Sseu-Tiao et Java.' J. A,, n-VIII, pp. S 2 * &
1. Ferrand, op. cit., p. 830, f. n, 2.

SUVARNADVlPA 101

as tribute 1 . In the present instance, also, the word tribute
need not be taken in any other sense, and it would be a mistake
to infer from this passage that the Chinese emperor exercised
any sort of sovereignty over the distant island of Java.

Of all the Hindu colonies in the Far East, the Hindu-ized
kingdom of Java thus appears to have been the first to enter
into diplomatic relations with China, for the first recorded
embassies from Champa and Kamboja are of later date. This
intercourse seems to have been continued in the third
century A. D. During the first half of this century two Chinese
envoys, K'ang T'ai and Tchou Ying, visited Fou-Nan, and
published two books on their return. In K'ang T'ai's work
named *Fou nan t'ou sou tchouan/ a country called Tchou-po
is mentioned several times. This country is placed to the east
of Fou-Nan, in the Tchang-hai, the Chinese name of that part
of the Sea of China which lies between Hai-nan and the
Straits of Malacca. It is further said, that to the east of
Tchou-po is the island of Ma-wou. Pclliot has corrected
this name as Ma-li, and has identified Tchou-po (as well as its
variant Cho-p'o) and Ma-li with Java and Bali. Another
Chinese work of the third century A. D., named 'Wai kouo
tchouan', also refers to Tchou-po, and says that its women know
how to embroider a cotton cloth with floral patterns 2 . If
we accept the identification of Pelliot, it would prove the
continuity of the intercourse between China and the Hindu
kingdom of Java. On the other hand, Fcrrand, although
he renders Tchou-po as Jawa, would identify it with Sumatra
rather than with Java 3 .

Regular diplomatic intercourse between China and Java
(Cho-p'o) was resumed in the fifth century A. D. 4 We read in

1. For the real meaning of 'tribute', cf. Hirth, J. R. A. S., 1896,
pp. 64-65 ; and Groeneveldt Notes, p. 4.

2. B. E. F. E. O., Vol. IV. pp. 269-70.

3. Ferrand in J. A., n XX (1922), pp. 175 ff.

4. Java seems to be now referred to as Cho-p'o, although this
identification cannot be regarded as certain. On this identification,

102 HINDU COLONISATION IN JAVA

the 'History of the First Sung Dynasty', that in 430 A. D., the
kingdom of Ho-lo-tan, which ruled over the island of Java
(Cho-p'o), sent to the imperial court ambassadors offering
diamond rings, red parrots, white Indian rugs and cottons,
Javanese cottons, and similar articles. Four or five embassies
were sent from Ho-lo-tan between A. D. 434 and 452 ; one
authority places these embassies in 433, 430, 449, and 452 A. D.,
while another authority refers them to 433, 434, 437, 449, and
452 A.D. In addition to the embassies from Ho-lo-tan, Chinese
annals refer to two embassies from Cho-p'o in 433 and 435 A.D.
In the latter year, the king of this country, named Che-li-pVta-
t'o-a-la-pa-mo sent an envoy to the Chinese emperor to present
a letter and some presents. The Chinese name of the king has
been rendered as Srl-piida-dhara( or dharu )-varman by
Schlegel, Bhatara Dwaravarman by Ferrand, and Srl-pada
Purnavarman by Rouffacr. Schlegel points out that this
embassy camo from Cho-p'o-p'o-ta and not Cho-p'o, and has
nothing to do with Java, but Pelliot believes that the Chinese
writers have erroneously combined the names of two countries,
Cho-p'o and P'o-ta, into one. 1

Now Ho-lo-tan is definitely said to be in Cho-p'o, which
is identified with Java. Even assuming the correctness of this
identification, which, by the way, cannot be regarded as
absolutely certain, it is not clear whether Ho-lo-tan denotes a

which is assumed throughout in the text, cf. Pelliot, B. E. F. E. O,.
Vol. IV, p. 271. The accounts of the embassies that follow are
based on Pelliot's article (op. cit. pp. 271 ff ) and Schlcgel's
notes, T'oungPao, Ser. I, Vol. X, (1899), pp. 159 ff. Schlegel, however,
identifies Ho-lo-tan with Kelantan in Malay Peninsula, and so regards
Cho-p'o island as equivalent to this Peninsula ( Ibid. ; also, pp. 247 ff. )

I. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 9; Schlegel T'oung Pao, Serie i,
Vol. X, p. 251 ; Pelliot, op. cit. p. 271 ; Ferrand J. A. n VIII.
(1916), p. 526. Rouffaer 'Enc. Ned. Ind'., Vol. IV (1905), p. 367.
Rouffaer's construction is, no doubt, influenced by the fact that
inscriptions testify to the existence of a king called Purnavarman.
This identification is, however, least likely.

SUVAKNADVIPA 103

kingdom comprising the whole of the island of Java, or
merely one of the many kingdoms into which that island was
divided. The statement in the "History of the First Sung
Dynasty", that "the state of Ho-lo-tan ruled over the island of
Cho-pV, would, no doubt, incline us to accept the former
view, but certain details, preserved in the same Chinese history,
would favour the latter. Thus we read : "In 433 A. D.,
the king of Ho-lo-tan named Vaisa ( or VaiSya )-varmari
presented a letter. The kingdom was afterwards usurped by
the son of Vaisavarman, of which the old king complained in
a letter to the emperor of China, dated in the year 436 A. D."
Now, as we have seen above, a king bearing a different
name was ruling over Cho-p'o or Cho-pVp'o-ta in 435 A. D.
We must, therefore, presume that Ho-lo-tan and Cho-p'o (or
Cho-pVpVta) were two distinct kingdoms, and if the latter
were in Java, as some scholars have hold, Ho-lo-tan could not
mean the whole of Java.

In any case, these notices in Chinese annals do not furnish
us with any definite information regarding the political history
of Java. We are, however, more fortunate in respect of our
knowledge regarding the spread of Hindu culture there.

The first valuable and authentic account of the state of
Hindu culture in Java is furnished by Fa-hien. The ship,
which that pilgrim took at Ceylon in order to return to his
native land, was driven off its course by a storm, and Fa-hicn
had to stop in Yavadvlpa (Ye-pVt'i) for five months, in the
year 414-15 A. D. Regarding this country he observes that
"various forms of error and Brahmanism are flourishing, while
Buddhism in it is not worth mentioning" 1 . It appears
clearly from this statement, that various forms of Brahmanical
religion were prevalent among the people of Java in general,
but Buddhism had no strong hold over them. Fa-hicn's

I, Legge Fa-hien, p. 113. The scholars are generally agreed
that Ye-p'o-t'i of Fa-hien denotes Yavadvipa ( Java ). Ferrand,
however, identifies it with Sumatra.

104 HINDU COLONISATION IN JAVA

remarks would justify the conclusion that Brahmariical culture
was not confined to a handful of colonists, settled among a vast
native population, but that it was the prevailing religion of
the country.

But that Buddhism soon made its influence felt in Java,
appears clearly from the story of Gunavarman, preserved
in 'Kao seng tchouan' or 'Biography of famous monks', compiled
in A. D. 519 1 . Gunavarman (K'ieou-na-pa-mo), grandson
of Haribhadra (Ho-li-pa-t'o), and son of SanghSnanda (Seng-
kia-a-nan), belonged to the royal family of Ki-pin (Kashmir
orKapiSa i.e. modern Afghanistan). He was of a religious
mood from his very boyhood. When he was thirty years old,
the king of Ki-pin died without issue, and the throne was
offered to him. But he rejected the offer and went to Celyon.
Later he proceeded to Java ( Cho-p'o ). During the night
preceding his arrival, the mother of the king of Java saw in
a dream that a monk was coming to Java in a sailing vessel.
Gunavarman arrived in the morning, and the queen-mother
was converted to Buddhism. Gradually the king, too, was
persuaded by his mother to adopt the same faith. At this
time Java was attacked by hostile troops. The king asked
Gunavarman, whether it would be contrary to Buddhist law,
if he fought against his enemy. Gunavarman replied that it
was the duty of everybody to punish the robbers. The
king then went to fight and obtained a great victory.
Gradually the Buddhist religion was spread throughout the
kingdom. The king now wished to take to the life of a monk,
but was dissuaded from this course by his ministers, on the
express condition, that henceforth no living creatures should be
killed throughout the length and breadth of the country.

The name and fame of Gunavarman had now spread in
all directions. In A. D. 424 the Chinese monks requested
their emperor to invite Gunavarman to China. Accordingly
the Chinese emperor sent messengers to Gunavarman and

i. Pelliot, op. cit. pp. 274-5.

SUVARNADVIPA 105

the king of Java named Po-to-kia. Gunavarman embarked
on a vessel, owned by the Hindu merchant Nandin (Nan-t'i),
and reached Nankin in A. D. 431. A few months later he died
at the age of sixty-five.

In spite of its obvious exaggerations, this story may be
taken -is an evidence, that Buddhism made its influence felt
in Java, almost immediately after the departure of Fa-hien.
It must be remembered, of course, that when a Buddhist
book refers to the conversion of the whole country, or states
that no animal was killed throughout the length and breadth
of a country, it means no more than that Buddhism and
Buddhist practices were prevalent to some extent in that
country. Fa-hien, for example, says about the MadhyadeSa
(Middle kingdom) in India : "Throughout the whole country the
people do not kill any living creature, nor drink intoxicating
liquor nor cat onions or garlic 1 ." This statement is demon-
strably false, if it is taken to apply to the whole of that
vast region in India which is indicated by MadhyadeSa.
It may at best be taken to refer to the practices of the
Buddhist section of the community. The references to the
abstention of the people of Java from the slaughter of animals
can only be taken in a modified sense, as in the case of India.

Having now briefly reviewed the notices in Chinese annals,
regarding the Hindu kingdom of Java, we may now turn to a
study of the indigenous sources. The earliest epigraphic
evidence about the kingdom is furnished by four rock-
inscriptions 8 . 'These are all found within the boundaries

1. Legge Fa-hien, p. 43.

2. These inscriptions have been published and discussed by
several scholars. The latest and most authentic account is that by
Dr. Vogel in his article 'The Earliest Sanskrit Inscriptions of Java"
( 'Publicaties Van den Oudheidkundigen Dienst in Nederlandsch-
Indie 1 , Deel I 1925, pp. 15-35. ) The accounts of the inscriptions
given in the text are based on this article. Two other inscriptions
discovered at Pasir Awi and Muara Ci-Anten have not yet been
deciphered. Facsimiles of these are given by Vogel in his article.

14

166 HINDU COLONISATION IN JAVA

of the Province or Ecsidcncy of Batavia, and at no
great distance from the capital city of that name. Three of
them, those of Ci-aruton, Jambu, and Kebon Kopi lie close to
one another in the hilly country round Buitcnzorg, the
residence of the Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies.
The site of the fourth inscription, that of Tugu, was near the
sea-coast to the east of Tanjong Priok, the port of Batavia.
It is now preserved in the Batavia Museum'.

The Inscriptions Nos. 1, 2, and 3, refer by name to a king

POrnavarman, whose capital was the city of TarumS (No. 2)

or TsrOrna (No. 1). He is described as 'lord of the earth', and

*"," "ving obtained victories against his enemies'. But, beyond

on ond similar vague praises, very little, by way of definite

these .. " n, a n be gathered from these records. Inscriptions

- - '

norma. . _. .^v^,. u|t .

Nos 1 and 2 m6rely rrfcr to the foot-prints of king
Purnavarman, and a pair of foot-prints is actually engraved
over the inscription in each case. No. 3 similarly refers to
the foot-print of the elephant of the king of Taruma, and
here, again, a pair of elephant's foot-prints 1S actually engraved
above and below the inscription.

The Inscription No. 4 is dated in the twenty-second year
of Purnavarman, and describes his grandfather as rS;^ (royal
le) and another ancestor, perhaps his father, as r^dfnraja.
Thelattoris said to have dug the Candrabhaga ( a canal or
^ river) which reached the ocean after passing by the capital
city. In his twenty-second regnal year, Purnavarman himself
dug a similar canal, called the Gomatl river, 6 122 rffem* m
length, and paid a daksh,* (fee) of a thousand cows to the
Brahmanas. , .

Now, several problems arise out of these inscriptions, and
wc may discuss them separately before drawmg general conclu-
sions from the records. ^

In the first place, was Purnavarman a really hstorieal
person ? The doubt was first expressed by Kern, who regarded
pZavarman as "an ancient hero and sage of Indian ongin,

SUVARNADVlPA 107

whose worship had been introduced in Western Java/' This
view, which is accepted by others, 1 is difficult to understand.
Perhaps the figures of his foot-prints, and those of his elephants,
too, inclined Kern to the above view. But the inscription No.
4, which definitely states that a canal was dug by him in the
twenty-second year of his reign, with full details about the
time when it was commenced and finished, cannot possibly
leave any doubt that he was an historical person. The
meaning of his foot-print is not quite clear. Normally, it
should be regarded as an object of worship, but then the same
view will have to be extended to the foot-print of the king's
elephant. In other words, we have to presume that both the
king and his elephant came to be regarded as divine. There
is nothing, however, in the inscriptions themselves to indicate
that the foot-prints were objects of worship. On the other
hand, we must remember that about the time when Purnavar-
man lived, the theory of a divine origin of kings had been
firmly established in India", and no surprise need be felt that it
was carried to its logical conclusion in the Hindu-ized Java 3 .

The next question is, did Purnavarman belong to a royal
line ? Dr. Vogel remarks : "Nothing is said regarding the
king's lineage. May we infer from the absence of any mention
of ancestors... that king Purnavarman could not boast any
lofty parentage ?" It is difficult to follow Dr. Vogel here.

1. Cf. Veth Java (and Ed.), Vol. I, p. 27.

2. Cf. Manu-Smrti, Chap. VII, vv. 4,8. Allahabad Pillar
Inscription, 1. 28. ( Fleet Gupta Inscriptions, pp. 8, 15. )

3. For the worship of foot-prints prevalent among different
communities, cf. Vogel, op. cit. pp. 16-21. According to this scholar,
the foot-prints marked 'certain places hallowed by the presence of
Purnavarman'. He also suggests that the Ci-aruton rocks marks the spot
of the king's cremation, and that "the foot-prints of the deceased monarch
were credited with a magical power to protect his followers and to hurt
his enemies." (op. cit, p. 20). Stutterheim thinks that the foot-prints
were symbols of the king's supremacy over the land (B, K. I., Vol. 89,
pp. 288-9).

108 HINDU COLONISATION IN JAVA

The inscription No. 4 refers to "rcijadhiraja guru", and
Vogel himself has taken the word 'guru 9 to mean the king's
father, on the strength of a Javanese inscription in which the
deceased king is designated as "Bhatftraguru". Then the
same inscription contains a clear reference to 'pitftmafia' or
grandfather of the king who is also described as 'nxjarsi/
or royal sage. Thus, there can be no donbt, that the family
to which Piirnavarman belonged could boast of at least three
generations of kings.

The third question is, can we regard Purnavarman as
Indian in origin ? The point at issue has been admirably
summed up as follows by Dr. Vogcl : "It would, perhaps,
be equally risky to conclude from Purnavarman's name, that
he was of Indian birth or extraction. He may, no doubt,
have been an immigrant from some part of the Indian continent,
or a descendant of such an immigrant, but equally well
he may have been an indigenous prince of Malay race who had
adopted Hindu culture and religion and along with it
had assumed an Indo- Aryan name. A Sanskritic name in
itself would prove as little with regard to the nationality of
the bearer as a name in Arabic, Hebrew, Greek or Latin. That
Pflrnavarman, if not a Hindu, was at any rate Hindu-ized,
may be taken for granted". Dr. Vogel's position seems at first
sight to be quite unassailable. But if we analyse the facts
a little more deeply, his conclusion does not seem to be
convincing enough. In the first place, it is to be noted that
even the four short records of Purnavarman's time show how
thoroughly Java was saturated with Hindu civilisation. An
intimate acquaintance with Sanskrit language is evinced by
the records themselves, which are written in Sanskrit verse,
and, with a few exceptions, in correct Sanskrit style. Reference
to Visnu's feet and Airavata, together with the gift of a thousand
cows as daksina or sacrificial fees to Brahmanas, indicate
great familiarity with Hindu religion, mythology, and rituals.
Reference to Indian months and tithis, and to dhanus as
standard of measurement, show clearly that in these respects

SUVAENADVlPA 109

the Indian systems had superseded the older ones. Above all,

the adoption of geographical names, such as CandrabhSgS

and Gomati, not only indicate a familiarity with Indian

geography, but clearly testify to the existence of an Indian

element in the settled population. Lastly, the king bears a

purely Indian name, without any additional Javanese element,

such as comes into vogue in later times. We may add

to this, that there is absolutely nothing that is non-Indian

in all these records. Now, can we explain all these by merely

supposing that the original people of Java were converted

to Hinduism by bands of missionaries ? Obviously not.

Something far more powerful was necessary than mere peaceful

propaganda by a band of missionaries. It will be difficult

to cite an instance, where similar changes were brought about

except by the political domination of the people from whom

the culture was borrowed. Now, the political domination of

India over Western Java could bo exercised in two ways.

That region might have been conquered by an Indian king and

included in his empire, or a band of Indian adventurers

might have seized the political power and authority there by

some means or other. All that we know of the history of the

time tells against the first assumption, and the latter view

alone seems to be probable. If, then, we are convinced that

nothing but the political domination of Indians over Java

can explain all the facts we know about its culture and

civilisation, we must presume the royal dynasty of Java,

at least at the beginning of the period when the Hindu culture

thoroughly established itself there, to be of Indian origin.

It is not, of course, intended to maintain that such Hindu

dynasty kept itself strictly aloof from the indigenous population.

On the other hand, the Hindu chiefs must have freely mixed

with the natives, and intermarried with them, with the result

that there was a fusion of blood between the two races. But

that Parnavarman's family was Indian in origin, seems to be

the most reasonable presumption, and nothing but the very

strongest evidence would rebut it.

110 HINDU COLONISATION IN JAVA

The last problem in connection with Pdrnavarnian is his
date. The only key to its solution is furnished by a
palaeographic study of his inscriptions. By comparing these
with the Kutei inscriptions of Mulavarman, Dr. Vogel concluded
that Piiriiavarman is to be placed in the middle of the fifth
century A. D. But as the date of Mulavarman (400 A. D.,
according to Dr. Vogel) is itself a matter of conjecture, this
conclusion cannot be regarded as a very satisfactory one. On
the other hand, if we compare the alphabets used in the
inscriptions of Purnavarman with those, respectively, of
Bhadravarman and Sambhuvarman, rulers of Champa, it is
apparent that they fully agree with the latter in all distinctive
characteristics, viz., (1) upward curve of the end of the
vertical stroke in A 1 , r, a and medial u ; (2) looped t ;

(3) advanced form of s, in which the central stroke, joining the
two verticals, is modified to a loop attached to the base ;

(4) medial i denoted by a circle. All these characteristics
are absent in the inscription of Bhadravarman, Jmt make their
first appearance in the inscriptions of Sambhuvarman 1 .
Parnavarman may, therefore, be regarded as a contemporary of
the latter, rather than of the former. Now Bhadravarman
ruled about 400 A. D., while Sambhuvarman ruled from about
565 A. D. to 629 A. D. a It would be reasonable, therefore,
to place Purnavarman in the sixth century A. D.

To sum up. We may reasonably assume that by the sixth
century A. D., king Parnavarman was ruling in Western Java
with his capital at Taruma. He belonged to a Hindu, or at any
rate a Hindu-ized royal family, which must have been reigning
for at least three generations in Java. Purnavarman ruled for
at least twenty-two years. If we are to judge from the
find-spots of his inscriptions alone, his kingdom was of a

1. The palaeography of the inscriptions of Champa has been
discussed by me in B. E. F. E. O., Vol., XXXII, pp. I2;ff.

2. The dates of these kings have been discussed in my work,
Champa, Chs. Ill, IV.

SUVARNADVIPA 111

moderate size, comprising the valleys of the Ci-liwong and
Ci-tarum l rivers, together with the hilly country round
Buitenzorg, in Western Java. It is likely, however, that his
authority extended further to the east, though no epigraphic
evidence of it has yet come to light. At the time of Pornavar-
man, Hindu culture and civilisation was firmly established in
Java. Purnavarman was a follower of Brahmauical religion,
and Sanskrit literature was studied in his court.

In addition to the kingdom of PGrnavarman, there must
have been other kingdoms in Java about this time. This seems
to follow indirectly from the Chinese references to the kingdom
of Ho-lo-tan in Java, as already discussed before. But the
Chinese annals even furnish a more direct evidence of this
state of things. Two historical works of the Sui period
( A. D. 589-618 ) give almost identical accounts of a country
called Tou-po, which Pclliot has, with good reasons, identified
with Java. It is said in these works, that in the country there
are more than ten capitals, or at least towns, whose chiefs
assume royal titles. 8 Now, this is a clear indication that
the island was divided into a number of petty kingdoms.
Whether this statement is true of the Sui period, or the
authors borrowed it from an earlier source, as Pelliot thinks
possible, it may be taken as reflecting very correctly the normal
political condition of Java. Even in the history of the T'ang
period reference is made to twenty-eight feudatory kings,
acknowledging the supremacy of the king of Java. 3 This
corroborates the general picture, in so far as it relates to the
period of the T'ang dynasty ( 618-000 A. D. ).

Another evidence in the same direction is the use, in
Chinese annals, of different names for the kingdoms in Java

1. According to Pleyte, this river has preserved the name
of the capital city Taruma, On the extent of Pdrnavarman's kingdom,
cf. Krom Geschiedenis, p. 77 5 Vogel, op. cit. p. 16.

2. B. E. F. E. O., Vol. IV, pp. 275-6.

3. GroeneveldtNotes, p. 13.

112 HINDU COLONISATION IN JAVA

which, for the time being, were in direct intercourse with the
imperial court. The name Java, under various forms, occurs
throughout as a general appellation for the country, but
different specific names are sometimes used, presumably to
denote different kingdoms situated in the island. We have
already come across one such name, m., Ho-lo-tan. The
annals of the T'ang period ( A. D. 618-906) similarly mention
Ho-ling as the name of the kingdom of Java, and apparently
take the two terms as synonymous, although the form Java
again comes into use towards the close of the same period 1 .
Here, again, Ho-ling was presumably the name of the
most important kingdom in Java with which the Chinese
had intercourse during the T'ang period, and hence they applied
the name to the whole country, a large part of which was
subordinate to that kingdom.

Ho-ling has been generally admitted to be a Chinese
transcription of Kalinga. It would thus appear that the leading
kingdom in Java was named after the well-known province of
India, and it may easily lead to the inference that colonists
from Kalinga dominated in that quarter. It is generally held
that the name of Java was changed to Kalinga about this time,
and that this was due to a fresh stream of immigration from
Kalinga or the eastern part of India 8 . It is, however, equally
likely that the kingdom of Kalinga existed in Java from an
early period, but it only attained political importance, and
came to be the leading state in Java, during the T'ang period.

If we are to judge from the existing antiquarian remains
in Java, we may presume that the kingdom of Ho-lo-tan
represents the kingdom in Western Java ruled over by
PQrnavarman. For that is the only kingdom in Java of which

1. Ibid., pp. 13-15.

2. Krom Geschiedenis, pp. 95-102. The transcription of Hiuen
Tsang's Yen-mo-na as Yavadvipa shows the prevalence of the name in
the 7th century A. D. ( B. E. F. E. O. iv. p. 278 ; J. R. A. S., 1920, pp.

117 ff. )

SUVARNADVIPA lift

the existence in the fifth century A. D. is established by
epigraphic evidence. Arguing in a similar way, it may be held
that Ho-ling represents a kingdom in Central Java, which has
yielded inscriptions and monuments that may be referred to
the seventh century A. D. It should not, however, be
forgotten that such a line of argument, based as it is
on a sort of negative evidence, cannot be very much
relied upon. It is, at best, a working hypothesis, which may
be demolished at any moment by the discovery of a single new
inscription. Subject to this note of caution, we may regard
the two embassies to China sent in 640 (or 648) and 666 A. D.,
as having proceeded from Central Java 1 . The New History
of the T'ang Dynasty has preserved a tradition about a queen
of Java which deserves particular notice. It runs as
follows a : "In 674-5 A. D. the people of this country took as
their rider a woman of the name Si-ma. Her rule was most
excellent. Even things dropped on the road were not taken
up. The Prince of the Arabs (Tazi), hearing of this, sent a
bag with gold to be laid down within her frontiers : the people
who passed that road avoided it in walking, and it remained
there for three years. Once the heir-apparent stepped over
that gold and Si-ma became so incensed that she wanted to
kill him. Her ministers interceded and then Si-ma said :
"Your fault lies in your feet, therefore it will be sufficient to
cut them off". The ministers interceded again, and she had
his toes cut off, in order to give an example to the whole nation.
When the prince of Tazi heard this, he became afraid and
dared not attack her."

How far this story may be regarded as historical, it is
impossible to say. The reference to a particular year, no doubt,

1. B. E. F. E. O., Vol. IV, p. 286.

2. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 14. Pelliot's version of the story
( B. E. F. E. O., Vol. IV, p. 297 ) differs in some unimportant details.
The date is given by Groeneveldt as 674, while Pelliot puts it as
674-5 A. D. Cf. Ferrand J. A. 11 XX ( 1922 ), p. 37.

15

114 HINDU COLONISATION IN JAVA

invests the story with an appearance of reality. It is inter-
esting to note that the story refers to the choice or selection
of the ruler by the people. Whether this may be taken to
indicate a regular system of election of the ruler by the people,
it is difficult to say. But considering the fact that such a
system was known in India, its presence in Java is not difficult
to account for. The Tazi in the story no doubt denotes the
Arabs. But whether the story-teller had in view the distant
Arabia, or a colony of the Arabs nearer home, say, in Sumatra,
it is difficult to say 1 .

We may now take into consideration the epigraphic evidence
that we possess regarding the kingdom in Central Java.
The earliest inscription, so far discovered in this region,
is that engraved on a large boulder near the famous spring,
called Tuk Mas, at the foot of the Morbabu hill, which lies to
the north-east of Magclang. The inscription, consisting of
one line, is a Sanskrit verse in Upajati metre. It praises the
natural spring, which issues from the rock, and compares it to
the river Ganges. No historical information is supplied by
the inscription, but its importance lies in the alphabet used,
and quite a large number of figures engraved above it. The
alphabet shows a developed stage of that used by Piirnavarman,
and may thus be referred to the seventh century A. D. a The
figures, about sixteen in number, are symmetrically arranged
on two sides of the central one, which looks like a trident
fixed upon a raised and terraced platform. To the proper
right of it can be seen, a wheel, a conch-shell, a mace, and

I. Groeneveldt is in favour of the latter hypothesis ( Notes, p. 14,
f. n. 4. ), while Pelliot supports the former ( B. E. F. E. O., Vol. IV,
p. 297.)

a. The inscription has been edited, together with a facsimile,
by H. Kern (V. G., Vol. VII, pp. 2O i ff.). Recently Mr. B. C, Chhabra
has given a revised reading ( J. A. S. B. L., Vol I, pp. 33 ff. ). Kern
assigned the record to the fifth century A. D., but Krom assigns it to the
middle of the seventh century A. D.

SUVARNADVlPA 115

some warlike weapons. To the left are four representations
of lotus, together with a battle-axe, a lance, and a pitcher.

It is not difficult to recognise in these figures the well-
known symbols of the two great gods, Visnu and Siva ; w'#., the
trident of the latter, and the conch-shell, wheel, mace, and lotus
of the former 1 . There is a round object immediately to the
proper right of the central figure of the trident, and this may
be construed as the Kamandalu (water-pot) of Brahma. The
pitcher may be a symbol for Agastya, whom tradition regards
as having been born in a pitcher. The battle-axe may refer to
ParaSurama or Yama. The object above the wheel looks
like a noose, the weapon of Varuna. On the whole, there can
be little doubt that the figures were emblems of different
gods worshipped in that region.

Thus the inscription of Tuk Mas proves that Central
Java was as thoroughly saturated with Brahinanic religion as
West Java. The alphabet of the inscription also appears to
belong to the same class as that used in West Java, although
it shows some developed forms. There is, therefore, no need
to presume that there was a wide gulf separating Western and
Eastern Java either from historical or cultural points of
view.

i. Krom infers from the symbols that the prevailing religion was
the worship of iva ( Geschiedenis, p. 100 ). But the four Vinuite
symbols are quite clear, and cannot be ignored.

Chapter VII

EARLY HINDU COLONISATION IN
SUMATRA

Sumatra is the most westerly, and next to Borneo, the
largest island of the Malay Archipelago. It is bounded by
the Indian ocean on the west and the China and Java seas
on the east. The three Straits of Malacca, Banka, and Sunda
separate it from Malay Peninsula in the north-east, and the
islands of Banka and Java in the east and south-east. A long
chain of islands runs along its coasts, the most notable of them
being Simalur, Banjak, Nias, Batu, the Mentawi archipelago
(the islands of Mentawi, Sipura, North Paggy and South Paggy),
and Engano on the west, and Rupat, Padang, Bengkalis, Rantau,
the archipelagos of Riouw and Lengga ( including the Pulu Tiyu
islands), Banka, and Billiton in the east.

Sumatra is a long narrow country running in the direction
north-west to south-east. It is very narrow at its two ends
and broad at the centre. The equator passes through it,
dividing it almost into two equal halves, as it lies
between 5-39' North and 5-57' South Latitude. Its total length
is 1060 miles, and the extreme breadth 248 miles, giving a total
area of 167,480 sq. miles.

A series of mountains, known collectively as Bukit Barisan,
run along the whole length of the island, parallel, and in close
proximity, to its western coast. This range of hills contains
about 90 volcanoes, of which 12 are yet active. The strip of
territory between the hills and the Indian ocean on the west
is extremely narrow, while there is a vast alluvial plain in the
east. The rivers on the west are consequently short, torrential,
and rarely navigable, while those on the east have a much

SUVARNADVlPA 117

longer course, and are, in many cases, navigable to a great
length. The most important of these, beginning from the north,
are the Asahan, the Panei, the Eokan, the Siak, the Kampar,
the Indragiri, the Jambi, and the Musi (Palembang river).

The Jambi river is the largest of all, having a width of
1300 ft. opposite Jambi. It springs from mount Indrapura,
and has two tributaries, the Batang Han and the Tambesi.
Next in importance is the Musi river, on which stands
Palembang, once an important city, and, perhaps, the capital of
a flourishing kingdom, but now an insignificant town, 55 miles
inland.

There are several lakes in the midst of the long range of
hills, such as Toba, Maninjau, Sengkara, Korinchi, and the
Ranau, with a number of small ones round the base of
Mt. Indrapura.

Sumatra is rich in mineral resources. Gold, silver, and
copper are found in large quantities, while sulphur, naphtha,
alum, and saltpetre arc found in great abundance near the
volcanoes. Among others may be mentioned tin, lead,
magnetite, legnite, and coal.

Sumatra has an abundance of forests, full of teak, sandal,
ebony, and many varieties of less useful timber. The forests
also yield all the gum-producing trees, such as the camphor-tree,
benzoin-trees etc. ; cocoanut, sago-palm, areca-palm and several
other varieties of palm are found in large number.

The land is very fertile, and a rich yield of food crops and
others is easily obtainable. The chief products of agriculture
arc rice, coffee, tobacco, cloves, nutmeg, pepper, cotton,
cocoanut, and sugarcane. In recent times there has been a great
expansion of native-grown rubber.

In spite of its rich natural resources Sumatra is but a poor
and thinly populated country. Although about four times
the size of Java, it has only a population of 6,219,004, or nearly
one-fifth of that of the latter.

Even this small population is not homogeneous in character.
Quite a large number of tribes, differing in language, physical

118 HINDU COLONISATION IN SUMATRA

aspect, and culture may be easily distinguished. The following
may be noted as the more important ones.

1. The Lampongs inhabit the region, called after them, at
the southern extremity of Sumatra, on the Straits of Sunda.
In spite of their present poverty and insignificance, they
possessed at one time a high degree of civilisation under the
influence of the Hindus.

2. The Lebongs live in the upper valley of the Ketuan
river.

3. The Rejaiigs live in Rcjang, in the upper course of the
Musi river. They still use an alphabet of Hindu origin.

4. The Korinchis live in the country surrounding Indrapura.

5. The Malays are divided into two classes, the Malays
of sea-board and the Malays of Mcnangkabau. The former
closely resemble the Malays of Malacca and live chiefly
in the country of Palembang. The latter ragard themselves
as the primitive Malays, and, in old days, atttained to a high
degree of civilisation. Until recently, there was a general
belief that Mcnangkabau was the original home of the Malays,
who emigrated to the Malay Peninsula. Menangkabau was
the name of an inland kingdom, comprising a scries of mountain
valleys, near mount Merapi and lake Sengkara. It had an
area of about 3000 sq. miles and was situated between the
equator and one degree south. It was subdued by the Dutch
in 1840.

6. The Bataks are of the same stock as the Malays.
They inhabit the mountainous region of lake Toba, the
Residency of Tapanuli, and a large part of the northern coast
of Sumatra.

7. The Gayos live in the western coast of Sumatra.

8. The Achinose claim to be of Hindu origin and inhabit
the kingdom of Achecn ( also called Atjeh, Acheh, Atcheh,
Achin, Achcra) in the northern part of Sumatra.

In addition to the above there arc various other tribes
living in the adjacent islands,

SUVARNADVIPA 119

The Dutch Government has divided its dominions in
Sumatra in six administrative divisions, r/v.,

1. The Government of the West Coast of Sumatra
consisting of three Residencies, viz.

(a) The Highlands of Padang capital, Fort I)e Kock.

(b) The Lowlands of Padang capital, Padang.

(c) Tapanuli capital, Padang Sidcmpuan.

2. The Residency of Benkulan capital, Benkulan.

3. The Residency of Lainpong districts capital, Telok-
Betong.

4. The Residency of the East Coast of Sumatra capital,
Mcdan.

5. The Residency of Palembang capital, Palembang.

6. The Government of Achccn capital, Kota Raja 1 .

The geographical position of Sumatra marks it out as
preeminently the site of the earliest Hindu settlement in
Indonesia. Being situated midway on the route between
India and China, important harbours and trading stations must
have developed on its eastern coast from an early period.
From what has been stated above, it will not be wrong to place
the beginning of Hindu colonisation there two or three
centuries before the Christian era 2 .

As has already been remarked above, in chapter VI,
Ferrand takes all the early references to Yavadvipa to apply
to Sumatra rather than to Java. Thus Ptolemy's labadiou,
Fa-hicn's Yc-pVt'i, the Yavadvipa of Ramiiyana, Yavakoti
of 5ryabhatiya and Suryasiddhanta, and Yc-tiao, Tchou-po,
Tou-po, and Cho-p'o of the Chinese annals, are all taken by him

1. Sumatra is only partially explored, and the description of its
physical geography is necessarily incomplete. The account is based
on the works of Cabaton and Crawfurd.

2. F'errand puts it as some centuries before the Christian era ;
J. A., n-xx(i922), p. 204.

120 HINDU COLONISATION IN SUMATRA

to refer to Sumatra 1 . In short almost everything that has been
Said above regarding the early history of Java, should, according
to Ferrand, be relegated to the history of Sumatra. But this
view has not yet met with general acceptance 3 , and we have
therefore provisionally accepted these as references to Java.
But if labadiou of Ptolemy refers to Java, Barousai and
Sabadebai, mentioned by the same author, may be taken to refer
respectively to the western and south-eastern coast of
Sumatra 3 .

The first definite reference to a state in Sumatra occurs in
connection with an embassy reported in a Chinese account of
644 ( or beginning of 645 A. D. ). The name of the kingdom
is given as Mo-lo-yeu, which has been easily identified, on the
authority of I-tsing's writings, with modern Jambi in Sumatra.
The name, which no doubt represents Indian Malay u, may
perhaps also be traced, under the form of Mo-lo-che, in a list
of kingdoms given in a Chinese text of the seventh century
A. D. The same list includes another kingdom To-lang-pV
houang, which has been identified with Tulangbawang in
south-eastern Sumatra 4 .

But neither of the two kingdoms, Malayu or Tulangbawang,
flourished for a long time. They were both superseded by
another powerful kingdom which came into prominence about
this time. This kingdom is referred to as Fo-che or Che-li-fo-
che by the Chinese, Sribuza by the Arabs, and Srl-Visaya in
the Indian records. To M. Ccedfcs we owe the brilliant
hypothesis, now generally accepted by all scholars, that all
these names are but different renderings of the name Sri-Vijaya.
Some of Ccedfes' arguments, and specially his identification of
Sri-Vijaya with Palembang, may not be accepted as valid ;

1. Ferrand, in J. A., ii-xx (1922), pp. 208 ft,

2. Cf. e. g., Krom-Geschiedenis, pp. 55-6.

3. Krom-Geschiedenis, pp. $6-7

4. B. E. F. E. O., Vol. IV, p. 324-6. Ferrand, J. A., u-xi (1918),

pp. 477 **

SUVARNADVIPA 121

nor can we accept his contention that Sri-Vijaya was the
original seat of the Sailendras, and thus the nucleus of a mighty
empire in the Pacific. But his main thesis that there was a
kingdom called Sri-Vijaya iu Sumatra has been supported by
several inscriptions found in Sumatra itself. The identification
of Sri-Vijaya must remain for the present an open question,
but we can safely regard the kingdom as comprising the
south-eastern part of Sumatra and some of the neighbouring
islands, (vide Appendix to Bk. II).

The earliest reference to Sri-Vijaya has been traced to the
Chinese translation of a Buddhist Sutra, named Che eul yeou
king. This translation, made in 392 A. D., contains a
description of Jambudvipa which is quoted in King lia yi
siang compiled in 516 A. D. We read there that "in the sea

there arc 2,500 kingdoms the first king is called Sseu-li

the fourth king is Cho-yc." The first name refers no doubt to
Ceylon. As to Cho-ye, a commentator of the sixth century
A. D. says that it means "victory." From this Ferrand
concludes that Cho-yc stands for jaya (victory), and he takes
this country to be Sri-Vijaya 1 .

But even if Sri-Vijaya existed as an independent kingdom
in the 4th century A. D., it did not attain any great importance
till a much later period. It is only towards the close of the
seventh century A. D., that Sri-Vijaya comes into prominence.
I-tsing, writing between 689 and 692 A. D., says that the
Malayu country is now the country of 8ri-Vijaya. a In other
words, Malayu was then absorbed in the growing^ kingdom
of Sri-Vijaya. The political greatness of Sri-Vijaya,
thus hinted at by the Chinese pilgrim, is corroborated by
independent evidences. The most important of them are five

i. Ferrand, J. A. n -XX (1922), p. 210. S. LeVi (J.A. n-XI
( 1918), pp. 83-4 ) took Cho-ye as Java, but Ferrand's view seems
preferable.

a. Takakusu I-tsing, p. 10. Takakusu transliterates Che-li-fo-che
asSri-Bhoja.
16

122 HINDU COLONISATION IN SUMATRA

inscriptions 1 which form the groundwork for the study of the
history of Sri-Vijaya. Of these one is written in Sanskrit, and
the rest in old Malay language. The Sanskrit inscription (No. 5)
was found at Ligor, in the Malay Peninsula, to the south of the
Bay of Bandon. Of the four Malay inscriptions, three were
found in Sumatra, two (Nos. 1-2) near Palembang, and one
(No. 3) in the province of Jambi (ancient Malayu), while the
fourth (No. 4) was found at Kota Kapur, in the island of Banka.

No. 1 is dated in Saka 605 (683 A. D.), and refers to a king
of Sri-Vijaya having done some good to his country by virtue of
magical powers (?) acquired by him.

No. 2 is dated in Saka 606 (684 A. D.), and refers to some
pious deeds and pious hopes of king Sri Jayanas*a. The name may
be a mistake for Jayanaga ; Stutterhcim reads it as Jayawaga 1 .

Nos. 3 and 4 are nearly identical copies of the same
record. It begins with an invocation to the gods who protect
the kingdom of Srl-Vijaya. It holds out threats of severe
punishment to the inhabitants of countries, subordinate to
Sri-Vijaya, if they revolt or even aid, abet, or meditate revolt,
against the suzerain authority. Punishment was to be meted
out not only to actual rebels, but even to their family and clans.
On the other hand, the people who would remain loyal to the

j. These inscriptions have been edited by G. Coedes in B, E. F.
E. O., Vol. XVIII. No. 6, and Vol. XXX, Nos. 1-2. Full
references to early publications are given by him. For later comments
and elucidations, cf.

a. R. A. Kern B. K. I., Vol. 88 (1931), pp. 508-13.

b. G. Ferrand J. A., Vol. CCXXI (1932), pp. 271-326.

c. J. W. J. Wellan Tijd. Aard. Gen., 2nd ser. deel Li ( 1934 ),
pp. 348-402.

d. B, C. Chhabra J. A. S. B. L., Vol. i, pp. 28 ff.

e. G. Coedes-B. E. F. E. O., Vol. XXXIII, pp. 1002 ff.
Following Coedes I have taken Bhumi Java in Ins. No. 4 as Java ;

others take it as part of Sumatra. For different views on this point, see
Krom Geschiedenis, p. 114, f. n. i, and Coedes, op. cit. pp. 53-4.

For the find-spot of inscription No. 5, cf. B. K. I., Vol. 83
( 192? )> P. 462. 2. O. B., p. 67.

SUVARNADVlPA 123

government of Sri-Vijaya, together with their clan and family,
would be blessed with all sorts of blessings divine.

This is the general sense of the record which, as we learn
from a postscript added to No. 4, was engraved in Saka 608
( 686 A. D. ), at the moment when the army of Sri-Vijaya was
starting on an expedition against Java which had not yet
submitted to Sri-Vijaya.

These four inscriptions prove incontestably that Sri-Vijaya
was already a powerful kingdom before 683 A. D., and that it
had established its political supremacy not only over Malayu
(Jambi), but also over the neighbouring island of Banka. The
ruler Jayana^a was a Buddhist, and the two inscriptions found
near the capital vix., Nos. 1 and 2, are definitely Buddhist in
character. These corroborate, in a way, the statement of I-tsing
that the king of Sri-Vijaya, as well as the rulers of neighbouring
states, favoured Buddhism, and that Sri-Vijaya was a centre of
Buddhist learning in the islands of the Southern Sea 1 .

I-tsing tells us that the king of Sri-Vijaya possessed ships,
probably for commerce, sailing between India and Sri-Vijaya.
We also learn from his memoir that the city of Sri-Vijaya was
the chief centre of trade with China, and that there was a
regular navigation between it and Kwang-Tung*.

That Sri-Vijaya was fast growing into an important naval
and commercial power appears clearly from the Ligor (formerly
called Vieng Sa) or Vat Sema Murong Inscription (No. 5).
This inscription, dated in Saka 697 ( 775 A. D. ), refers to the
mighty prowess of the king of Sri-Vijaya. He is said to be the
overlord of all neighbouring states whose kings made obeisance
to him. He made three Buddhist Caityas, and his chaplain and
the latter^s disciple built other Stupas and Caityas. Now this
inscription shows that the Buddhist king of Sri-Vijaya had
extended his political supremacy over the Malay Peninsula, as
far at least as the Bay of Bandon, before 775 A. D.

The inscriptions thus give clear indication, in broad outline,
of a purely aggressive policy pursued by the kingdom of Sri-
l. Takakusu I-tsing, p. XL I. 3. Ibid., pp, XL-XLI,

124 HINDU COLONISATION IN SUMATRA

Vijaya during the century 675-775 A. D. By 680 A. D. it had
absorbed the neighbouring kingdom of Malayu, conquered the
neighbouring island of Banka, and sent a military expedition
to the powerful island kingdom of Java. Before a century was
over, we find its power firmly established in the Malay Peninsula,
as far at least as the Bay of Bandon.

The Chinese Annals state that several embassies came
from Sri- Vijaya to China during the period between 670 and
741 A. D. The date of the earliest embassy cannot be
ascertained, but there is no doubt that it was before 695 A. D.
By an imperial edict dated in that year, orders were issued for
supplying provisions to the ambassadors of different countries
then living in the Chinese court. Thus provisions for six
months were to be given to ambassadors from North India,
South India, Persia, and Arabia ; provisions for five months were
to be given to ambassadors from Sri-Vijaya, Chen-la (Cambodia),
Ho-ling (Java) and other kingdoms ; to envoys from Champa
provisions were to be given only for three months". 1 It
appears, therefore, that Sri- Vijaya was already recognised as a
leading state, the only one in Sumatra to be individually
referred to, before the close of the seventh century A. D.

Two other embassies from Srl-Vijaya visited China in 702
and 716 A. D. In 724 A. D. the king of Sri- Vijaya named
Che-li-t'o-lo-pa-ino (Srindravarman) sent an ambassador with
presents consisting of two dwarfs, a Negro girl, a party of
musicians, and a parrot of five colours. The ambassador is called
Kumara. It might be a personal name, or denote the crown-
prince. The emperor conferred on him the title of tcho-tch'ong
(general) and presented him 100 pieces of silk. He also conferred
an honorary title upon the king.

In 728 the king of Srl-Vijaya again presented the emperor
with parrots of motley colours. In 742 the king sent his son
to the Chinese court with customary offerings, and was again
rewarded with an honorary title. 1

I. B. E, F. E. O., Vol. IV, p. 334. 2, Ibid, pp. 334-5-

Chapter VIII

EARLY HINDU COLONISATION IN BORNEO

Borneo is the largest island in the Malay archipelago,
but it is little known and thinly populated. Its area is seven
or eight times that of Java, but its population is only about
three millions. The island is covered with dense forests and
crossed by a series of mountain groups from the north-east
to south-west The highest peak, Kinabalti, is about 13,698 ft.
The rivers arc large and navigable, but often impeded by mud-
banks. The principal rivers arc the Brunei, the Rejang, and
the Kapuas on the west, and the Sampit, the Katingan,
the Barito, and the Mahakam or the Kutei on the south and
east.

The forests yield excellent timber and trees producing gums
and resins. The famous Sago-palm is the characteristic tree
of the island. The soil is very fertile and all kinds of crops
can be grown easily. The sub-soil is rich in mineral resources
such as diamond, gold, silver, lead, copper, antimony, zinc,
bismuth, platinum, mercury, arsenic, coal, and petroleum. But
neither agriculture nor industry flourishes among the Dyaks,
a semi-savage tribe, who forms the chief element of the native
population. The river-side Dyaks are hospitable, intelligent,
and energetic, but those in the interior are almost savages.

Borneo is now divided between the British and the Dutch.
All the north and part of the western part of the island,
comprising about a third of the total area, is under the British
suzerainty. It includes the territories of the British North
Borneo Company, the Sultanate of Brunei, a protectorate, and
the principality of Sarawak, founded in 1841 by James Brooke
and still ruled by his family. Sarawak is a British Protectorate,
though the ruler is independent in matters of internal
administration,

126 HINDU COLONISATION IN BORNEO

The Dutch territories are divided into two Residencies :
the western Borneo, with its capital Pontianak, at the mouth of
the Kapuas ; and the Residency of the south and east, with its
capital Banjermassin, at the mouth of the Barito river.

The earliest evidence of the Hindu colonisation in Borneo
is furnished by four inscriptions 1 . These were discovered
in 1879 in the district of Koti (Kutei), at Muara Kaman, on
the Mahakam river, three days' journey above Pelarang. The
remains of a Chinese jonk, found in the locality, mark it
to be an important sea-port in old days, and that perhaps
explains the early Hindu settlements there. Three golden
objects, including a Visnu image, were also found at
Muara Kaman. The inscriptions are engraved on stone pillars
of about a man's height. As the tops of the pillars were
rounded, they were originally mistaken for 'Liiiga', but the
inscriptions clearly show that they were sacrificial pillars (yupa).
The following is a summary of these inscriptions :

1. King Mulavarman has done many virtuous acts, to wit,
gifts of animals, land, Kalpa-tree (?) and other things. Hence
the Brahmanas have set up this pillar*.

2. King Kundunga had a famous son Asvavarman, who,
like the Sun (AmSuman), was the originator of a family. Of
the three sons of Asvavarman, the eldest was king
Srl-Mulavarman, noted for his asceticism, who performed a
sacrifice called Bahu-Suvarnakam (much-gold). This pillar
(yupa) of that sacrifice has been set up by the Brahmanas.

3. The chief of kings, Mulavarman, made a gift of
20,000 cows to the Brahmanas in the holy field of Vaprakefivara.

i. Kern (V. G., Vol. VII, pp. 55-76.) edited the first three
inscriptions. They have all been re-edited by Vogel in B. K. I., Vol. 74
(1918), pp. 167-232 ; Vol. 76, p. 431 ; and commented upon by
Mr. B. C. Chhabfa in J. A. S. B. L,, Vol. I, pp. 33 ff.

2- I have followed the usual rendering of the inscriptions. But
the terms 'Kalpa-Vrksa, Bhumi-dana, and Go-sahasrika' may be taken
as names of specific sacrifices, as they are included in the list of sixteen
Mah^danas.

SUVARNADVIPA 127

For that pious act this pillar (yiipa) has been set up by the
Brahmanas who came here.

4. As from king Sagara is born Bhaglratha **.

Mulavarman...(the rest is illegible).

These inscriptions have been referred on palreographic
grounds to about 400 A. D. 1 Thus there is no doubt that
by the fourth century A. D. the Hindus had established
kingdoms in the eastern part of Borneo. The inscriptions
leave no doubt about the thorough-going nature of the
Brahmanical religion in that locality. The Brahmanas
evidently formed an important element of the population, and
the Brahmanical rites and ceremonies were in great favour
at the court.

Mulavarman was undoubtedly a historical personage, but
the same cannot be asserted with certainty of his two
predecessors, Kundunga and Afivavarman. Kroin 2 thinks
that as these were not illustrious Sanskrit names of the usual
type, they may be regarded as historical personages. But the
two names have undoubtedly a striking resemblance with
Kaundinya, and ASvatthama, names associated with the
foundation of Kamboja (Cambodia). An inscription of
Champa 8 , dated 657 A. D., thus speaks of the origin of the
Hindu kingdom of Kamboja :

"It was there that Kaundinya, the foremost among
Brahmanas, planted the spear which he had obtained from
Drona's son ASvatthama, the best of Brahmanas."

But in spite of the resemblance in the names, it should be
remembered, that as the inscription was a contemporary record
of Mulavarman, its writers were not likely to have given two
mythical names as those of his father and grand father ; and as
such we can accept them as historical personages.

i This is the view of Kern (op. cit.) and Vogel, (op. cit ).

2, Geschiedenis, p. 69.

3. 'Champa' by R. C. Majumdar, Book III. p. 23.

128 HINDU COLONISATION IN BORNEO

The second king has a correct Sanskrit name, whereas
the name of the first may be either of Indian or native origin.
The second king is also referred to as the founder of the
family. On these grounds Krom 1 concludes that Kundunga
was a native chief, whose son adopted Hindu religion and
culture, and thus became the founder of a Hindu-ized royal
family. This, however, cannot be readily accepted, as
'VamSakartta' does not necessarily mean the first king of a
long line, but may refer to the most illustrious member of it.
This is proved by such terms as Raghuvama and Sagaravama,
frequently used in Indian literature, although neither Raghu nor
Sagara was the first member of the royal family to which they
belonged.

In addition to the antiquities at Muara Kaman described
above, remains of ancient Hindu culture have also been found
in other localities in east Borneo. The most notable among
these is the cave of Kombeng* which has yielded a large
number of interesting articles. Kombeng is situated considera-
bly to the north of Muara Kaman and to the east of the upper
course of the Telen river.

The cave consists of two chambers. In the back-chamber
were found twelve sandstone images, pieces of carved stone, and
a few half-decayed iron-wood beams. All these may be taken
as the remains of a temple which were hurriedly secreted in
the dark chamber of a cave, apparently for safety. That the
images were brought from elsewhere is clearly indicated by the
fact that most of them have a pin under the pedestal, evidently
for fixing them in a niche. The images were both Buddhist
and Brahmanical. The latter included those of Siva, GaneSa,
Nandi, Agastya, NandlSvara, Brahma, Skanda, and Mahakfila.
The preponderance of the images of Siva and Sivaite gods,

1. Geschiedenis, p. 69,

2. The antiquities of Kombeng have been described by Witkamp
in Tijd. Aard. Gen., Vol. 31 (1914), pp. 595-598, and by Bosch in O. V.,
1925, pp. 132-6.

SUVARNADVlPA 129

there being two images of GaneSa seems to indicate that the
prevailing religion in that quarter was Saiva.

One of the most interesting facts about these images is that
they do not appear to be the products of Indo- Javanese art
which was predominant in Borneo in the later periods, and as
such we have to postulate a direct stream of Hindu influence
from India to Borneo 1 . The images of Kombeng cave are
thereby invested with a great importance, as being the earliest
specimens of Hindu art in the eastern colonies. As already
remarked above, they evidently belonged to a temple of which
the ruins are preserved in the cave. That temple was one of
the earliest specimens of Hindu architecture, though unfortuna-
tely nothing now remains of it in situ. The wooden beam,
however, proves that the main structure was built of wood.
We may well believe that this was the case with most, if not all,
of the early Hindu temples in the colonies, and this explains
the almost total absence of early specimens of Hindu temples
in that region. It is tempting to connect the Kombeng ruins
with those of Muara Kaman, and attribute all of them to one
stream of Hindu colonisation in the fourth century A. D. If
it were so, we may presume that the transition from wood to
stone architecture took place somewhat later than that period,
at least in some regions of the eastern colonies.

The antiquities secreted in the Kombeng cave must have
been brought there for safety from plains or lower regions
more exposed to a hostile attack. The original site of the
temple was probably in the valley of the Mahakam river.
This river undoubtedly played the chief part in the colonisation
of east Borneo by the Hindus. A great river is a necessity in
the early stages of colonisation by foreigners. In the first place,
its junction with the sea serves as a good sea-port and trading
centre, which receives goods from without and distributes them
in the interior, and, by the reverse process, collects articles from

i. This point has been discussed later in the chapter on Art,
Book V.

17

130 HINDU COLONISATION IN BORNEO

inland and ships them for foreign lands. Secondly, the foreign
colonists, having secured a firm footing in the port, find in the
river an excellent, and in many cases the only safe, means of
communication with the interior, as a preliminary stage to the
spread of their power and influence along its course.

But the Mahakam river was not the only one in Borneo
to play such an important rftle in the early colonisation of the
country by the Hindus. Another river, the Kapuas, offered
the same facilities for colonisation of western Borneo. At
various places on or near the bank of this river, we come
across archaeological remains of the Hindu period 1 , which,
taken together, imply a flourishing period of Hindu colonisation
of fairly long duration.

Among these archaeological remains we may specially note
the following :

(1) The Mukhalinga at Sepauk*.

(2) A stone in the river-bed near Sanggau, containing two
lines of writing in cursive script, which have not yet been
deciphered.

(3) Seven inscriptions on a rock at Batu Pahat, near the
springs of Sungci Tekarek, on carved figures, each of which
depicts a staff with a succession of umbrellas at the top, and is
thus possibly a miniature representation of a Stupa.

Four of these inscriptions repeat the formula "Ajfianacciyate
karma," and three repeat the well-known "Yc dharma hetupra-
bhava," both of which we meet with in Malay Peninsula
(Nos. 10 and 12). There is an eighth inscription, but it is
mostly illegible*.

(4) A large number of golden plates, inscribed in old
characters, found in a pot at the mouth of the Sampit river*.

(5) An inscription at Sang belirang 5 .

i. O. V., 1914, pp. 140-147- 2. O. V., 1920, pp. 102-105.

3. These inscriptions have been edited by Mr, B.C. Chhabra, op. cit.

4. Encycl. Ned, Ind., Vol. Ill, p. 198.

5. Not. Bat. Gen., 1880, p. 98.

SUVARNADVlPA 131

Here, again, the Hindu civilization is to be traced direct
from India, and not through Java, as the Mukhalinga and the
figures at Batu Pahat are both un-Javanese. The same
conclusion follows from a study of some archaeological remains,
notably in the south and east, other than those on the river
Mahakam and Kapuas. 1 Thus we have to conclude that
Hindu colonists, direct from India, settled in different parts of
Borneo during the early centuries of the Christian era. The
general belief that Borneo was colonised by Indo-Javanese
emigrants, cannot be accepted, at least for the early period.

j. See later, the chapter on Art, Book V.

Chapter IX.
EARLY HINDU COLONISATION IN BALI

The island of Bali is situated to the east of Java, separated
from it by a narrow strait, about a mile and a half wide. Its
dimensions are quite small. Its extreme length is 93, and
extreme breadth, about 50 miles. Its area is estimated to be
2,095 square miles, and its population 946, 387.

A chain of volcanic mountains, apparently a continuation
of that of Java, runs throughout the island from west to east,
leaving fertile valleys and plains on both sides. The highest
peaks of the mountain are the Peak of Bali or Gunung Anung
( 10,499 ft ), Tabanan ( 7,500 ft. ), and Batur (7,350 ft.).

The coast-line is difficult of approach and has but one or
two harbours. There are numerous rivers, but they are small,
and navigable, only for small vessels, upto the reach of the tide.
The island abounds in beautiful lakes at high elevation, which
supply abundant means of irrigation. The land is fertile, and
the whole country has the appearance of a beautiful garden.
The chief products of agriculture arc rice, maize, pulses, cotton,
coffee, tobacco, sugar-cane, and the fruits of Java.

The island of Bali possesses the unique distinction of being
the only colony of the ancient Hindus which still retains its old
culture and civilisation, at least to a considerable extent.
Islam has failed to penetrate into this island, and it still affords
a unique opportunity to study Hinduism as it was modified by
coming into contact with the aborigines of the archipelago. Its
past history, as well as its present condition, are, therefore,
of surpassing interest in any study of the ancient Indian
colonisation in the Far East.

Unfortunately, its past history is involved in obscurity.
Unlike the other colonies, it has not yet yielded any archseo-

SUVARNADVIPA 133

logical remains of a very early date, and its extant ruins belong
to a comparatively late period. We are, therefore, forced to fall
back upon Chinese evidence for the beginning of Balinesc
history.

Here, again, there is an initial difficulty. The Chinese
refer to an island called PVli, which etymologically corres-
ponds to Bali, and there are other indications in support of
this identification. But some particulars about PVli are
inapplicable to Bali. Thus there is a great deal of uncertainty
about it Some scholars, notably Schlegel and Groencveldt, have
sought to identify PVli with the northern coast of Sumatra, and
this view was generally accepted till Pclliot established the
identity of PVli and Bali, if not beyond all doubts, at least on
fairly satisfactory grounds. 1 We also propose to accept this
identification, at least as a working hypothesis.

i. P'o-li was formerly identified with northern coast of Sumatra
(cf. e.g. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 84. Schlegel in Toung Pao, 1898,
p. 276). But Pelliot has shown good grounds for rejecting this
identification (B. E. F. E. O., Vol. IV, pp. 279 ff).

The arguments of Groeneveldt are thus summed up by himself.
''The country called PVli is said by all Chinese geographers to be the
northern coast of Sumatra, and its neighbourhood to the Nicobar islands
is a sufficient proof that they are right". Pelliot has shown that the
Chinese geographers, referred to by Groeneveldt, are writers of the
nineteenth century, who have shown most lamentable lack of knowledge
of the geography of the outer world. Then, as to the vicinity of the
Nicobar islands, the Chinese term is Lo-tch'a, and there is not any
reliable evidence to identify it with Nicobar islands which are designated
by the Chinese by different names. Further Lo-tch'a is placed to the
east of P'o-li, while the Nicobar islands are to the north-west of Sumatra.

A passage in the History of the T'ang Dynasty, repeated in the
New History of the T'ang Dynasty, places P'o-li to the east of Ho-ling
or Kaling which has been identified with Java. Grocneveldt and Schlegel
wrongly translated this passage so as to place P'o-li to the west of
Kaling. Thus, instead of supporting the location of P'o-li in Sumatra,
the passage in the T'ang Dynasty is a strong evidence in favour of
identifying P'o-li with Bali, which is to the east of Java,

134 HINDU COLONISATION IN BALI

The History of the Liang dynasty ( 502-556 A. D.) contains
the earliest account of P'o-li. 1 It gives us the following
interesting account of the king of the country :

"The Bang's family name* is Kaundinya and he never before
had any intercourse with China. When asked about his
ancestors or about their age, he could not state this, but said
that the wife of Suddhodana was a daughter of his country.

"The king uses a texture of flowered silk wrapped round
his body ; on his head he wears a golden bonnet of more than
a span high, resembling in shape a Chinese helmet, and adorned
with various precious stones ( sapta rat no, or seven jewels). He
carries a sword inlaid with gold, and sits on a golden throne,
with his feet on a silver footstool. His female attendants are
adorned with golden flowers and all kinds of jewels, some of
them holding choivries of white feathers or fans of peacock-
There are some particulars of P'o-li which do not agree with Bali ;
e.g., it is placed to the south-east of Canton. But even in this respect
Bali is more acceptable than Sumatra. The only point really inexpli-
cable is the m easurement of P'o-li : "From east to west the country is
fifty days broad and from north to south it has twenty days." This is,
of course, not applicable to the small island of Bali ; but, as Pelliot has
remarked, it is precisely in such general statements that the Chinese
annalists often commit mistakes. If the measurement be held to be true,
P'oli can only be identified with Borneo, as was suggested by Brets-
chneider. But Borneo is to the north or north-east of Java, while P'o-li
is placed to the east of Ho-ling. Again, the New History of the T'ang
Dynasty says that P'o-li is also called Ma-li. Now Chau Ju-kua gives
Ma-li and Pa-li as names of the island of Bali, and the same information
is given in another text of the seventeenth century A. D. On these
grounds Pelliot, while admitting the possibility of Bretschneider's
hypothesis that P'o li is Borneo, is inclined to identify P'o-li with Bali.

i. The Chinese accounts that follow have been translated by
Groeneveldt (Notes, pp. 80-84), Schlegel (T'oung Pao, 1901, pp. 329-337),
and partly by Pelliot (B. E. F, E. O., Vol. IV, pp. 283-85). The
translations do not entirely agree. Differences on important points only
will be noted. I have mainly followed the translation of Groeneveldt.
3. According to Schlegel, Kaundinya was the name of the king.

SUVARNADVIPA 135

feathers. When the king goes out, his carriage, which is made
of different kinds of fragrant wood, is drawn by an elephant.
On the top of it is a flat canopy of feathers, and it has
embroidered curtains on both sides. People blowing conches
and beating drums precede and follow him."

The above account leaves no doubt that PVH was a rich
and civilised kingdom ruled by Hindu colonists who professed
Buddhism. The kingdom existed as early as the sixth century
A. D. For we arc told that in 518 A. D. 1 , the king sent an
envoy to China with a letter which contained the most servile
professions of homage and submission to the Chinese Emperor.
The letter should not, of course, be taken at its face value*.
In the year 523 the king, Pin-ka 8 by name, again sent an envoy
with tribute.

The History of the Sui Dynasty (581-617 A. D) gives us
some additional information : "The king's family name is
Ch'a-ri-ya-ka and his personal name, Hu-lan-na-po." This
information is repeated in the New History of the T'ang
Dynasty (618-906 A. D.), though the second syllable of the king's
name is written as V instead of W. If the same king is
intended, and both the historical accounts are correct in
representing him as ruling during the periods of which they
respectively treat, his reign must fall in the first quarter
of the seventh century A. D. The same conclusion follows
from the fact that the only embassy from P'o-li during the
Sui period is the one dated 616 A. D. Evidently the name
of the king was known from this embassy. As regards the
family name ChVri-ya-ka, Groene veldt notes that the first
two characters arc a common transcription of the word

1. The dates of the embassies are given as 517 and 522 by Pelliot,
and 518 and 523 by Groeneveldt and Schlegel.

2. Schelegel remarks : "The letter was probably fabricated by
the Chinese official who had to introduce the ambassadors of P'o-li at the
court of the emperor.*

3. Schlegel says ''Kalavimka."

136 HINDU COLONISATION IN BALI

Ksatriya, one of the four Indian castes. Thus the kings of
P'oli regarded themselves as belonging to Ksatriya or royal caste.

The History of the Sui Dynasty contains two other
interesting pieces of information. "The people of this country
are skilled in throwing a discus-knife of the size of a (Chinese
metal) mirror, having in the centre a hole, whilst the edge
is indented like a saw. When they throw it from afar at a
man, they never fail to hit him". In this we have a reference
to the weapon called 'Cakra', which is frequently mentioned in
early Indian literature, particularly in the epics and the PurSnas.
It was the special weapon of the great god Krsna. We are
further told that "they have a bird called Sari which can talk" 1 "
The Chinese word is an exact transcription of the Indian Sari.

The History of the Sui Dynasty says : "In the year 616
they sent an envoy to appear at court and bring tribute, but
they ceased to do this afterwards". But we have reference
to an embassy from P'o-li in 630 A. D. a , and evidently the
accounts in the New History of the T'ang Dynasty, so far as
they are new, are based upon the information gathered from it.
We may quote a few interesting details given in, this History.

"PVli is also called Ma-lL There are found many
carbuncles, the biggest of them having the size of a hen's egg ;
they are round and white, and shine to a distance of several
feet ; when one holds such a pearl at midday over some
tinder, the fire immediately springs from it.

"The common people have swarthy bodies and red frizzled
hair ; they have nails like hawks and beast-like teeth 3 .

1. Schlegel translates ''There is also a bird called 'ari* which
understands human speech' 1 .

2. This embassy js referred to only by Pelliot (op. cit, p. 285).

3. Schlegel concludes from this passage that the people in general
were barbarous, although there were some immigrants from India. But
Pelliot has shown that most likely this passage refers to Lo-tch'a and
not to P'o-li ; for, whereas, other works omit this in their account of P'o-li,
it occurs word for word in the account of Lo-tch'a preserved in many of
them.

SUVARNADVIPA 137

"They perforate their ears and put rings into them. They
wind a piece of cotton (Kupei) around their loins. Ku-pei
is a plant, whose flowers are spun to cloth. The coarser sorts
are called Pei and the finer sorts T'ieh".

There is no doubt that in Kupei we have a reference to
the cotton-plant, Karpasa, and evidently there was abundant
cultivation of cotton in the country.

After the embassy of 630 A. D. from Bali to China, we have
no knowledge of any further relation between the two countries
for a long time. There is, however, reference to a country
called Dva-pa-tan 1 , in the Old History of the T'ang Dynasty.
This country is placed to the east of 'Kaling' or Java, and has,
therefore, been identified with Bali by some scholars. It is no
insuperable objection to this identification, that the island
is also known by a different name PVli, for the Chinese are in
the habit of calling the same island, or different parts of it,
by different names. But except its geographical position,
which might indicate cither easteni Java or Bali, there is no
other ground for the identification. The king of this country
sent an embassy to China in 647 A.D., and the Chinese history
gives some details of its manners and customs.

The next reference to Bali (PVli) is in the records of
I-tsing, who enumerates it as one of 'the islands of the
Southern Sea where the Mulasarviistivada-nikaya has been
almost universally adopted". \Ve have already seen that the
prevalence of Buddhism in Bali is hinted at in the earliest
Chinese records dating from the sixth century A. D. It may
thus be fairly inferred that Buddhism had a firm footing in
the island in the early centuries of Hindu colonisation.

With I-tsing's record the Chinese sources for the early
history of Bali come to an end. Although fragmentary, they
furnish us interesting details of its history and civilisation
during the sixth and seventh centuries A. D., of course, on the
assumption, that the Chinese PVli denotes that island.

i. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 58. 2. I-tsing Records p. 10.

18

Chapter X

HINDU CIVILISATION IN SUVARNADVIPA

UP TO THE END OF THE SEVENTH

CENTURY A.D.

It seems almost to be a universal law, that when an inferior
civilisation comes into contact with a superior one, it gradually
tends to be merged into the latter, the rate and the extent of
this process being determined solely by the capacity of the one
to assimilate, and of the other to absorb. When the Hindus
first appeared in Malayasia, and canie into close association
with her peoples, this process immediately set in, and produced
the inevitable result. The early history of this contact, and
the first stages of the evolution of the new culture springing
therefrom arc, no doubt, hidden from us, but there is no dearth
of evidence to show what the ultimate effect was. As details
arc lacking, we are obliged to take a broad general view of
this development. The first colonisation of the Hindus
has been referred to the first or second century of the
Christian era, and we propose in this chapter to pass in review
the state of Hindu civilisation in Malayasia up to the end of
the seventh century A.D., so as to cover roughly about five or
six hundred years. This period may be regarded as the dawn
of Hindu civilisation, for, with the foundation of the empire of
the Sailendras, it reached its noonday-height and high-water
mark of glory and splendour.

The inscriptions discovered at Borneo, Java, and Malaya
Peninsula furnish us with the most valuable evidence in respect
of our enquiry. A close study of these records leads inevitably
to the conclusion that the language, literature, religion, and
political and social institutions of India made a thorough

SUVABNADVlPA 139

conquest of these far-off lands, and, to a great extent, eliminated
or absorbed the native elements in these respects.

The Kutei inscriptions 1 of Mulavarman hold out before us
a court and a society thoroughly saturated with Brahmanical
culture. They refer to the due performance of Brahmanical
sacrificial ceremonies with the attendant practices of erecting
sacrificial pillars and making gifts of land, gold, and cows to
the Brahmanas. The predominant position of the Brahmanas
is clearly indicated. The ideas of holy places had developed,
and reference is made to the sacred land of Vaprakevara.
A reference to AmumSn and Sagara also shows a f amiliarity
with the legends and traditions of the Hindus.

All these inferences are corroborated by the inscriptions
discovered in western Java. 2 These, too, present before us a
strongly Brahman-ized society and court. We have reference
to Hindu gods like Visnu and Indra, and Airilvata, the elephant
of Indra. The sacred nature and worship of footprints, such a
characteristic religious practice of India, though by no means a
monopoly of that country, seems to be a special feature of the
religion. The Indian months and attendant astronomical details,
and Indian system of measurement of distance are quite familiar
to the soil. Besides, in the river-names Candrabhaga and
Gomati we have the beginnings of that familiar practice of
transplanting Indian geographical names to the new colonies.

The images of various gods and goddesses discovered in
Borneo and Malay Peninsula corroborate the evidence of the
inscriptions. As already noted above, the images of Visnu,
Brahma, Siva, GaneSa, Nandi, Skanda, and Mahakala have been
found in Borneo 3 , and those of Durga, GaneSa, Nandi, and
Yoni in the Malay Peninsula*. Although the age of these
images is not known with certainty, they may be referred

i. Kern, V. G., Vol. VII, pp. 55 ff.

a. For references to these inscriptions, cf. Ch. VI.

9. See Chap. VIII. 4- See Chap. V,

140 HINDU CIVILISATION IN SUVARNADVlPA

approximately to the period under review, and indicate a
thorough preponderance of the Puranik form of Hindu religion.

The remains at Tuk Mas 1 in Java, referred to before,
lead to the same conclusion. Here we get the usual attributes
of Visnu and Siva, the Saiiikha ( conch-shell ), Cakra ( wheel ),
Qada ( mace ), and Padma ( Lotus ) of the former, and the
TriSala ( trident ) of the latter. Besides, the inscription refers
to the sanctity of the Ganges.

The images and inscriptions discovered in Sumatra, Borneo,
and different parts of the Malay Peninsula 9 prove that in
addition to Brahmanieal religion Buddhism had also made its
influence felt in these regions. Although the extant Buddhist
remains in Bali may not be as early as the seventh century
A. D., there is little doubt that Buddhism was introduced there
by this time 3 .

Taken collectively, the inscriptions prove that the Sanskrit
language and literature were highly cultivated. Most of the
records are written in good and almost flawless Sanskrit.
Indian scripts were adopted everywhere. Such names as
PQrnavarman and Mdlavarman, if borne by the aborigines,
would show that Sanskrit language made its influence felt even
in personal nomenclature. The images show the thorough-going
influence of Indian art.

The archaeological evidence is corroborated and supplemen-
ted by the writings of the Chinese. First of all, we have the
express statement of Fa-hien* that Brfthmanism was flouri-
shing in Yava-dvlpa, and that there was very little trace of
Buddhism. The graphic account which Fa-hien gives of his
journey from Ceylon to China ria Java is interesting in more
ways than one. It depicts to us the perilous nature of the sea
voyage which was the only means of communication between

1. Kern, V. a, Vol. VII. pp. 201. ff.

2. Cf. the different Chapters dealing with the history and art of
these regions.

. See Chap. IX. 4- Legge, Fa-hien, pp. in. ff.

SUVARNADVlPA 141

India and her colonies in Indonesia. It further tells us that the
200 merchants who boarded the vessel along with Fa-hien were
all followers of Brahmanical religion. This statement may
be taken to imply that trade and commerce were still the chief
stimulus to Indian colonisation. As the merchants belonged
mostly to Brahmanical religion, we get an explanation of its
preponderance over Buddhism in the Archipelago.

The story of Gunavarman shows how Buddhism was intro-
duced and then gradually took root in Java in the fifth
century A. D. As Gunavarman is known to have translated a
text of the Dharmagupta-sect 1 he must have belonged to the
Molasarvastiviida school. It is perhaps for this reason that the
sect established its predominance in Java and the neighbouring
islands, as we know from I-tsing.

The accounts left by I-tsing leave no doubt that towards
the close of the seventh century A. D. Buddhism had spread
over other regions. The following two paragraphs from his
"Record of Buddhist Practices" convey a fair idea of the state
of things.

"In the islands of the Southern Sea consisting of more than
ten countries the Mulasarvilstivadanikaya has been almost
universally adopted ( lit. 'there is almost only one' ), though
occasionally some have devoted themselves to the Sainmitinikaya ;
and recently a few followers of the other two schools have also
been found. Counting from the West there is first of all P'o-lu-
shi (Pulushih) island, and then the Mo-lo-yu (Malayu) country
which is now the country of Srlbhoja (in Sumatra), Mo-ho-sin
(Mahasin) island, Ho-ling (Kalinga) island (in Java), Tan-tan
island (Natuna island), Pern-pen island, PVli (Bali) island,
Ku-lun island (Pulo Condore), Fo-shih-pu-lo (Bhojapura) island,
O-shan island, and Mo-chia-man island.

"There are some more small islands which cannot be all
mentioned here. Buddhism is embraced in all these countries,
and mostly the system of the Hlnay&na (the Smaller Vehicle)
i, J.A., u-VUl (1916), p. 46.

142 HINDU CIVILISATION IN SUVARNADVlPA

is adopted except in Malayu (Sribhoja), where there are a few
who belong to the Mahayana (the Larger Vehicle") 1 .

We have already discussed the identification of some of
these islands and may refer to Takakusu's learned discussion for
the location of the rest. But whatever we may think of these
identifications, there is absolutely no doubt whatsoever that
these islands are all to be located in Malayasia, and the statement
of I-tsing may be taken as generally true for this region. It may
thus be regarded as certain that the Hmayana form of Buddhism
was fairly prevalent all over Malayasia, though Mahayanism
was not altogether unknown.

In addition to the general statement quoted above, I-tsing
has left some details of his own journey which throw interesting
light on the culture and civilisation in Malayasia. On his way
to India, the pilgrim halted in Sri-Vijaya for six months, and
learnt the Sabdavidya (Sanskrit Grammar). During his return
journey also he stopped at Sri-Vijaya, and, after a short stay
in China, he again returned to the same place. Here he was
engaged in copying and translating the voluminous Buddhist
texts which he had brought with him from India. Why he
chose this place for Ms work is best explained in his own
words :

"Many kings and chieftains in the islands of the Southern
Ocean admire and believe (Buddhism), and their hearts are set
on accumulating good actions. In the fortified city of Bhoja
( i.e., Sri-Vijaya) Buddhist priests number more than 1,000,
whose minds are bent on learning and good practices. They
investigate and study all the subjects that exist just as in the
Middle Kingdom (Madhya-deSa, India) ; the rules and ceremonies
are not at all different. If a Chinese priest wishes to go to the
West in order to hear (lectures) and read (the original), he had
better stay here one or two years and practise the proper rules
and then proceed to Central India" 8 .

I. I-tsing Record, pp. 10-11. 2. Ibid, p. XXXIV,

SUVARNADVlPA 143

The position of Sri-Vijaya as an important centre of
Buddhism is also indicated by the biographies of the Chinese
pilgrims to India which I-tsing has compiled 1 . Quite a large
number of Chinese pilgrims such as Yun-ki, Ta-tsin, Tcheng-
kou, Tao-hong, Fa-lang, and others made a prolonged stay in
Sri-Vijaya, learned the local dialect (Kouen-luen, probably a form
of Malay) as well as Sanskrit, and engaged themselves in
collecting, studying, and translating Buddhist texts. We are
also told that the Chinese pilgrim Hui-ning, on his way to
India, stopped for three years in Java (Ho-ling), and, in
collaboration with a local monk called Jnanabhadra, translated
several scriptural texts.

It is thus evident that in the seventh century Buddhism and
Buddhist literature had their votaries in Malayasia, and there
were in this region important centres of Indian learning and
culture which attracted foreigners.

The importance of Sri-Vijaya in this respect deserves,
however, more than a passing notice. Apart from its position
as a great centre of Buddhism, it merits distinction as the
earliest seat of that Mahayana sect which was destined ulti-
mately to play such a leading part in the whole of Malayasia.
According to the express statement of I-tsing, quoted above,
Hinayanism was the dominant religion in Malayasia in his
time, except in Sri-Vijaya, which contained a few votaries of
Mahayana. The same writer also refers to the existence of
YogaSastra (of Asanga) in Sri-Vijaya. All this is fully corrobo-
rated by the inscriptions of the kings of Sri-Vijaya referred to
in Chap. VII. The inscription of JayanaSa, dated 684 A. D.,
contains definite references to Mahayanist doctrine. It mentions
pranidhana and the well-known successive stages of development
such as (1) the awakening of the thought of Bodhi ; (2) the
practice of six paraniitas ; (3) the acquisition of supernatural
power ; and (4) mastery over birth, action (karma), and sorrows
(kleSa), leading to (5) the final knowledge (anuttarabhisamyak-

i. 1-tsing Memoire, pp. 60, 63, 159, 182, 187.

144 HINDU CIVILISATION IN StJVARNADVlPA

sambodhi). The inscription of JayanaSa is the earliest record in
Malayasia referring to the Mahayana sect. Taking it along
with the evidence of I-tsing, we may presume that MahaySnism
was a recent importation into Sri-Vijaya and had not spread
much beyond this centre 1 .

The occurrence of the word 'Vajrasarira' in the inscription
of Jayanasa leaves no doubt that the Mahayana in Srl-Vijaya
was of the Tantric form known as Vajrayana, Mantrayana, or
Tantrayfina. Its further development in Java and Sumatra will
be dealt with in a subsequent chapter. According to the general
view of scholars, this cult was developed, mainly in Bengal,
towards the middle of the seventh century A.D. It is, therefore,
interesting to observe, first, the rapidity with which new ideas
travelled from India to the Far East, and secondly, the influence
exerted by the Buddhists of Bengal over the development of
Buddhism in Sumatra, an influence, of which more definite and
concrete evidence is available for the eighth and ninth
centuries A.D.

Several eminent Indian Buddhists visited Malayasia and
helped to spread there the new developments in Buddhism. For
the seventh century A. D. we have a distinguished example in
Dharmapala, an inhabitant of Kafici, and a Professor at
Nalandii, who visited Suvarnadvlpa 9 . Early in the eighth
century A. D. Vajrabodhi, a South Indian monk, went from
Ceylon to China, stopping for five months at Srl-Vijaya. He
and his disciple Amoghavajra, who accompanied him, were
teachers of Tantrik cult, and are credited with its introduction
to China 3 .

The Chinese accounts and stories like those of Gurjavar-
man*, Dharmapala, and Vajrabodhi clearly indicate that there
was a regular intercourse between India and Malayasia. A

1. Cf. Chap. VII.

2. Kern Manual of Indian Buddhism, p. 130.

3. B. E. F. E. O,, Vol. IV, p. 336. J. A., Vol. 204 ( 1924), P. 242.

4. See Chap. VI.

SUVARNADVlPA 145

story told in connection with Lang-ga-su 1 shows that there
was even social intercourse between the two. A brother of the
king, being expelled from the kingdom, betook himself to India
and married the eldest daughter of the ruler of that country.
Indeed, everything indicates a regular, active, and familiar
intercourse between India and her colonies. It is said with
reference to Tun-Sun a , a kingdom in Malayasia which cannot
be exactly located, that "different countries beyond the Ganges
all come to trade here. To its market people come from east
and west, and it is visited daily by more than 10,000 men. All
kinds of valuable goods are found here."

The Chinese accounts thus corroborate the conclusions we
derived, in chapter IV, from a study of the Indian literature. An
active commerce kept up a close and intimate relation between
India and Malayasia, and supplied a regular channel through
which religion and social ideas, as well as political institutions
of India, found their way to those countries. Gradually an
increasing number of Indians settled down in these colonies,
and formed a nucleus, round which- the Hindu institutions grew
up and took a deep root in the soil.

For, in addition to religion, which might have been due to
outside missionary propaganda, the influence of Hindu civilisa-
tion is also clearly marked in the political and social ideas and
the system of administration. We may refer in this connection
to a state called Tan-Tan, the exact location of which it is
difficult to determine. This kingdom sent ambassadors to China
in 530, 535, and 666 A.D. We get the following account in the
Chinese annals : 8 "The family name of its king was Kchsatriya
[ Ksatriya ] and his personal name Silingkia (Sringa). He daily
attends to business and has eight great ministers, called the
"Eight Seats", all chosen from among the Brahmanas. The
king rubs his body with perfumes, wears a very high hat and a

I. See Chap. V. 2. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 119.

3. T'oung Pao, Ser. I, Vol. X, pp. 460-61 ; B. E, F. E. O.,
Vol. IV, pp. 284-5.
19

146 HINDU CIVILISATION IN SUVARNADVIPA

necklace of different kinds of jewels. He is clothed in Muslin
and shod with leather slippers. For short distances he rides
in a carriage, but for long distances he mounts an elephant.
In war they always blow conches and beat drums."

We also possess an equally interesting account of the
court-life of Lang-ya-su 1 .

"Men and women have the upper part of the body naked,
their hair hangs loosely down, and around their lower limbs
they only use a sarong of cotton. The king and the nobles
moreover have a thin, flowered cloth for covering the upper
part of their body ; they wear a girdle of gold and golden rings
in their ears. Young girls cover themselves with a cloth of
cotton and wear an embroidered girdle.

"The city-walls arc made of bricks. They have double
gates and watch-towers. When the king goes out, he rides on an
elephant. He is surrounded with flags of feathers, banners,
and drums, and is covered by a white canopy."

The gorgeous description of the court-life of PVli, which
we have quoted in the last chapter, corroborates and supplements
the picture. It is evident that the manners and customs
of Indian court were reproduced to a large extent in these
Indian colonies. In one respect alone, there is some divergence.
It is said that women of Lang-ya-su have the upper part
of the body naked. This custom, which still prevails in
Bali, is abhorrent to present Indian notion. It is to bo
remembered, however, that in our ancient sculptures, the upper
part of female body is represented as naked, and there are still
some tribes in India who observe the custom. It is, therefore,
difficult to say whether the custom was borrowed from India,
or was only a remnant of the indigenous practices. Speaking of
dress, it is interesting to note that cotton was the material
commonly used. The use of its Indian name Karpasa and the
express mention of Indian cotton in connection with the kingdom
of Ho-lo-tan, leave no doubt about the origin of the practice.

I. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 10.

SUVARNADVIPA 147

The use of Cakra (discus) as an offensive weapon is men-
tioned in connection with P'o-li, as we have seen above. This
weapon is peculiarly Indian, and the Mahabharata refers to it,
specially in connection with Krsna or Visnu. That the Indian
system of warfare was prevalent in the colonies is evident
from the Chinese account in respect of Ka-la. 1 The description
given there might apply in toto to any Indian army.

The following customs of Ka-la, referred to by the Chinese,
are also Indian in origin 2 . "When they marry they give no
other presents than areca-nuts, sometimes as many as two
hundred trays. The wife enters the family of her husband.
Their musical instruments are a kind of guitar, a transversal
flute, copper cymbals, and iron drums. Their dead are burned,
the ashes put into a golden jar and sunk into the sea."

1. See Chap. V., p. 77.

2. Groeneveldt Notes, pp. 122,

Book II

THE SAILENDRA EMPIRE

BOOK II

Chapter I.

THE SAILENDRA EMPIRE

In the eighth century A.D. most of the small states in
Malayasia (comprising Malay Archipelago and Malay Penin-
sula) formed part of a mighty empire. The rulers of this vast
empire, at least for the first four centuries, belonged to the
Sailendra dynasty, and we may, therefore, call it the Sailendra
empire. The current notions about the character and origin of
this empire differ very widely, and form at present a subject
of keen controversy among scholars. As it touches the
very root of the matter, and we shall have to reconstruct the
history of Sumatra, Java, and Malay Peninsula in altogether
different ways according as we accept the one view or the
other, I have discussed in detail these preliminary points in an
appendix to this section 1 . The history of the Sailendra empire,
as given below, is based on the views formulated therein.

Our knowledge of the early history of the Sailendras is
based solely on four inscriptions. It will be convenient,
therefore, to begin with a brief summary of these records.
1. The Ligor Inscription, dated 775 A. D. a

A stelae, found at ligor, in the Malay Peninsula, to the
south of the Bay of Bandon, contains two inscriptions on its
two faces.

The inscription A begins with eulogy of Srl-Vijayendra-
raja, and then refers to the building of three brick temples for

1. A French translation of this was published in the B. E. F. E. O.,
Vol., XXXIII, pp. 121-141.

2. B.E.F.E.O., Vol. XVIII, No. 6, App. I, pp. agff. The inscription
has been recently re-edited by Mr. B. C. Chhabra ( J. A. S. B. L. Vol. I,
No. i, pp. 2off.) I do not agree with him that the two portions belong to
the same record.

150 THE SAILENDRA EMPIRE

Buddhist gods by Sri-Vijayevarabhiipati. Jayanta, the royal
priest (rajasthamra) , being ordered by the king, built three
stupas. After Jayanta's death, his disciple and successor
Adhimukti built two brick caityas by the side of the three
caityas (built by the king). In conclusion, it is said, that
Srl-Vijajanrpati, who resembled Devendra, built the stupas
here in Saka 697.

The inscription B, engraved on the back of the stelae, consists
of only one verse and a few letters of the second. It contains
the eulogy of an emperor (rajadhiraja) having the name
Visnu (visnvakhyo). The last line is not quite clear. 1 It seems
to refer to a lord of the Sailendra dynasty named Sri-Maharaja,
and though probable, it is not absolutely certain, if this person
is the same as rajadhiraja having the name Visnu*.

2. The Kalasan Inscription dated 778 A.D. 3 .

1. M, Coedes reads the second word in the last line as 'Sailendra-
Vamfaprabhunigadatah which gives no sense. I proposed to read the
last word in the compound as nigaditah. But M. Coedes has kindly
informed me in a letter that there is no trace of i on d. P. Mus
(B.E.F.E.O., XXIX, 448) has suggested prabha(ba)niga<1atiih.

2. Mr. B. C. Chhabra has made the same suggestion and
naturally claims the credit of the discovery. But I wrote this (vide
J. G. I. S., Vol. I, No. i, p. 12) before I saw his article. I do not agree
with his identification of this Visnu with Visnuvarman of the Perak seal.
There are not sufficient grounds to justify it.

3. This inscription was originally published by Brandes in 1886,
T.B.G., Vol. 31, pp. 240-60. It was re-edited by Sir R. G. Bhandarkar
in J.Bo.Br.R.A.S., Vol. XVII, part II, pp. i-io. The last revised edition
is by Bosch, T.B.G., Vol. 68 (1928), pp. 5?ff According to Vogel, there
are two Sailendra kings referred to in this inscription : the Sumatran
ailendraraja, whose gurus played an important part in the foundation of
the Tara temple, and kariyana Panamkurana, the scion of the Sailendra
dynasty ruling in Java (B.K.I., Vol. 75, p. 634). This is, however, denied
by Stutterheim who takes the two to be one and the same king of the
Sailendra dynasty, with whose sanction the temple was built by his gurus
(B.K.I., 1930, Vol. 86, pp. 567-571)* Vogel has pointed out that kariyana
is equivalent to the old Javanese rakarayan or rakryan used as the title
pf a dignified officer, next only to the king.

SUVARNADVlPA 151

The inscription was discovered at the village of Kalasan
in Jogyakerta district of Java. Its contents may be summed
up as follows :

"Adoration to Goddess Srya-Tara.

"The preceptors (Guru) of the Sailendra king had a
temple of Tara built with the help (or sanction) of Maharaja
PaScapana Panamkarana. At the command of the Gurus
some officers of the king built a temple, an image of Goddess
Tara, and a residence for monks proficient in Vinaya-Maha-
yana.

"In the prosperous kingdom of the ornament of the Sailendra
/

dynasty (Sattendra-ramSa-tilaka), the temple of Tara was
built by the preceptors of the Sailendra king. In the Saka year
700, Maharaja Panamkarana built a temple of Tara for the
worship of Guru (gumpujartham), and made a gift of the
village of Kalasa to the Samgha. This gift should be protected
by the kings of the Sailendra dynasty. Srimaii Kariyana
Panamkarana makes this request to the future kings".

3. The Kelurak Inscription dated 782 A. D. 1

The inscription was originally situated at Kelurak, to the
north of Loro Jongrang temple at Prambanan in Jogyakerta
district. It is illegible in many parts, and the following
summary gives us the important points from the historical point
of view :

"Adoration to the three jewels (ratnatraya). Praises of
Buddhist deities.

"This earth is being protected by the king named Indra, who
is an ornament of the Sailendra dynasty (Sailendra-vamsa-tilaka\

I. Edited by Bosch in T.B.G., Vol. 68 (1928), pp, iff. The
Kalasan and Kelurak Inscriptions are both written in Indian alphabets
of the Nagaii type. Several other inscriptions, written in the same
alphabet, have been found in the same locality, e.g., at Batu-raka,
Plaosan, and Sajivan, but they are hardly legible and offer no connected
meaning.

152 THE SAILENDRA EMPIRE

who has conquered kings in all directions, and who has crushed
the most powerful hero of the enemy ( Vairi-vara-vlra-
vimardana).

"By him, whose body has been purified by the dust of the
feet of the preceptor coming from Gauda (Gaudl-dvlpa-guru)...

"This image of MaGju&ri has been set up for the welfare of
the world by the royal preceptor (raja-guru).

"In the Saka year 704, Kum&raghosha [/.<?., the preceptor
from Gauda mentioned above] set up this Manjughosha.

"This pillar of glory, an excellent landmark of religion
(dharmasettt), having the shape of an image of ManjuSri,
is for the protection of all creatures.

"In this enemy of Mara (smararati-nisudana) exist Buddha,
Dharma, and Samgha.

"This wielder of Thunder, sung as Svaml Manjuvak, contains
all the gods, Brahma, Visnu, and MaheSvara.

"I request the future kings to maintain this landmark of
religion (dJutrmasetu).

"The preceptor, who has obtained the reverent hospitality
(satk&ra) of king Sri-Saiigramadhanafijaya "

4. The Nalanda copper-plate Inscription dated in
the 39th year of king Devapala 1 .

This inscription records the grant of five villages by
Devapala at the request of the illustrious Balaputradeva,
king of Suvarnadvlpa. It concludes with a short account of
Balaputradeva which may be summed up as follows :

"There was a great king of Yavabhumi ( Yavabhumi-pala),
whose name signified 'tormentor of brave foes' (Vlra-vairi-
mathan-aniigat-abhidhftna) and who was an ornament of the
Sailendra dynasty (Sailendra-ramsa-tilaka). He had a valiant

I. Ep. Ind., Vol. XVII, p. 310. The inscription was also
published separately by Mr. N. G. Majumdar as a Memoir of the
Varendra Research Society.

SUVARNADVIPA 153

son (called ) Samaragravira ( or who was the foremost warrior
in battle). His wife Tara, daughter of king iSrl-Varmasetu l of
the lunar race, resembled the goddess Tara. By this wife he had
a son JSii-Biilaputra, who built a monastery at Nalanda".

The Ligor Inscription B definitely proves the establishment
of the Sailendra power in the Malay Peninsula. The inscription
on the other face seems to show that the Sailendras must have
wrested at least the Ligor region from the kingdom of
Sii-Vijaya sometime after 775 A. D. a The Kalasan and
Kelurak inscriptions prove that about the same time the
Sailendras established their authority in Java.

Thus during the last quarter of the eighth century A.D. the
Hindu kingdoms of Sumatra, Java, and Malay Peninsula had
all to succumb to, or, at least, feel the weight of, this new
power. The Sailendras ushered in a new epoch in more senses
than one. For the first time in its history, Malayasia, or the
greater part of it, achieved a political unity as integral parts
of an empire, and we shall sec later, how this empire rose to a
height of glory and splendour unknown before. But the
Sailendras did more than this. They introduced a new type of
culture. The new vigour of the Mahayana form of Buddhism,
and the highly developed art which produced such splendid
monuments as Candi Kalasan and Barabudur in Java, may be
mainly attributed to their patronage. The introduction of a
new kind of alphabet, which has been called the Pre-Nagari
script, and the adoption of a new name Kalinga for Malayasia,
at least by the foreigners, may also be traced to the same
source.

1. Pandit H. Sastrl reads this name as Dharmasetu, but
Mr. N. G. Majumdar's reading Varmasetu seems to me beyond doubt.

2. This is the view generally taken, but Dr. H. G. Quaritch Wales
denies the suzerainty of ri-Vijaya in Malay Peninsula. He takes
Srl-Vijaya as the name of a kingdom in Malay Peninsula (I.A.L.,
Vol. IX, No. i, p. 4) and refers to the name of 'an ancient site called
Caiya (i.e. Jaya, a shortened form of Vijaya ; and not far to the south
is situated 6ri- Vijaya Hill). 1

20

154 THE ^AILENDRA EMPIRE

Yet, strangely enough, we have as yet no definite
knowledge of the chief seat of authority of the Sailendras in
Malayasia. It is generally held that they were originally
rulers of Sri-Vijaya (Palembang in Sumatra), and extended
their authority gradually over Java and Malay Peninsula.
I have discussed this question in the Appendix and tried
to show how this hypothesis rests on a very weak basis.
I hold the view that there are far better grounds for the belief
that the original seat of authority of the Sailendras was either
in Java or in Malay Peninsula. For the present the question
must be left open.

But supposing that cither Sri-Vijaya or Malay Peninsula
was the nucleus of the Sailendra empire, the question
arises whether Java was an integral part of the empire
ruled over by the same king, or whether it formed a separate,
though subordinate, kingdom under a member of the same
royal dynasty. The first view would in ordinary circumstances
appear more reasonable. But two considerations have been
urged in support of the latter view. In the first place, as we
shall see later, the Sailendra period in the history of Java
was the most glorious in respect of the development of art
and architecture, which reached its climax in the famous
monument of Barabudur. Now, neither Sumatra nor
Malay Peninsula has left any monument worth comparison, and
although the destructive agencies of man and nature may
account for much, it is impossible to believe that mighty
monuments like Barabudur could have entirely vanished
without leaving any trace or memory behind. It is difficult
to believe, although such a thing may not be altogether
impossible, that an outlying dependency of such a kingdom
should produce so magnificent structures. In the second place,
in the Nalanda copper-plate of Devap&la, Balaputradeva
is mentioned as the king of Suvarnadvlpa, but his grandfather
is expressly referred to as a king of Yavabhumi, an ornament
of the Sailendra dynasty. If Yavabhumi means Java, as is
commonly accepted, the reference should be taken to mean

SUVARNADVIPA 155

that Java formed a separate state under a member of the same
dynasty. Mainly on these two grounds, Krom lias laid down
the hypothesis, that while Java, no doubt, came under the
sphere of influence of Srl-Vijaya, sooner or later it came
to form a separate state under a member of the same dynasty
which ruled over Srl-Vijaya 1 .

I am unable to concur in this view. As regards the first
argument, it is not so forcible against Malay Peninsula. In
addition to the archaeological monuments referred to above
(pp. 80ff.), Mr. R. J. Wilkinson has noted that here and there
in the forests of the Siamese Western States are fallen cities
and temples, the relics of a civilisation that built in imperishable
stone. He has also referred to other facts which "point to the
past existence of powerful states and a high standard of wealth
and luxury in the north of the Malay Peninsula 8 ". Besides,
it may be easily supposed that the seat of central authority
was transferred to Java for a period. As to the second
argument, I have shown in the Appendix that the expression
Yava-bhumi-pala in the Nalanda copper-plate may lead to u
very different inference from that of Krom.

But whatever might have been the original seat of the
Sailendras, there is no doubt that from the eighth century
A. D. they were the dominant political power in Malayasia.
The Sailendra empire is referred to by various Arab writers,
who designate it as Ziibag, Zabaj, or the empire of Maharaja,
and describe its wealth and grandeur in glowing terms.
It is quite clear from these accounts that the authority of
the king of Zabag extended over nearly the whole of Malayasia,
and possibly also over the two mighty kingdoms in Lido-China,
vix. 9 Kamboja (Cambodia) and Champa (Annam).

1. Krom-Geschiedenis 2 , pp. H2-45- M. Coedes, in a private letter,
objects to the Malay Peninsula on the following, among other grounds :
"The Peninsula is as poor in antiquities as Palembang itself."

2. R. G. Wilkinson, 'A History of the Peninsular Malays'
ed,)> Singapore, 1923, p. ij.

156 THE SAILENDRA EMPIRE

As regards Kamboja, we have a tradition preserved by
the merchant Sulayman, whose account of a voyage in India
and China was originally written in 851 and published by
Abfl Zayd Hasan, with additional remarks, about 916 A.D.
Sulayman gives us the following story 1 :

"It is said, in the annals of the country of Zabag, that
in years gone by the country of Khmer came into the hands
of a young prince of a very hasty temper. One day he was
seated with the Vizier when the conversation turned upon the
empire of the Maharaja, of its splendour, the number of its
subjects, and of the islands subordinate to it. All at once
the king said to the Vizier : "I have taken a fancy into my

head which I should much like to gratify I should like to

see before me the head of the kingofZfibag in a dish "

These words passed from mouth to mouth and so spread that
they at length reached the ears of the Maharaja. That king
ordered his Vizier to have a thousand vessels of medium size
prepared with their engines of war, and to put on board
of each vessel as many arms and soldiers as it could carry.
AVhen the preparations were ended, and everything was ready,
the king went on board his fleet and proceeded with his troops

to Khmer The king of Khmer knew nothing of the

impending danger until the fleet had entered the river which
led to his capital, and the troops of the Maharaja had landed.
The Maharaja thus took the king of Khmer unawares and
seized upon his palace. He had the king brought forth and

had his head cut off. The Maharaja returned immediately

to his country and neither he nor any of his men touched

anything belonging to the king of Khmer Afterwards

the Mahftrflja had the head washed and embalmed, then putting
it in a vase, he sent it to the prince who then occupied the
throne of Khmer."

i. Elliot History of India as told by its own Historians, Vol. i, p.8.
Ferrand in J.A., II- XX (1922), pp. 58ff., 219$. The story is also
repeated by Mas'Odf (Ferrand-Textes I, p. 93).

SUVAKNADVIPA 157

The story undoubtedly belongs to the domain of folklore,
but seems to have been based on a real struggle between Zabag
and the Khmer kingdom 1 of Cambodia. This is confirmed
by an inscription discovered in Cambodia itself. The
Sdok Kak Thorn Inscription, written in Sanskrit and Khmer,
and dated in 974 Saka (=1052 A.D.), tells us that king
Jayavarman II, who came from Java to reign in the city of
Indrapura, performed a religious ceremony in order that
KambujadeSa might not again be dependent on Java 1 . As
Jayavarman II ruled from 802 to 869 A. D., it follows that
the Khmer kingdom of Cambodia had come under the influence
of Java towards the close of the eighth century A. D. Taking
Java of the inscription to be identical with Zabag of the
Arabian account, it is reasonable to refer the 'old' story of
Sulayman to the same period. This fits in well with other
known facts. We have seen that the Sailendras had
established their authority over Malay Peninsula and Java
by 775 and 778 A. D. It is, therefore, quite reasonable
to hold that they had at least a temporary success
against the Khmcrs towards the close of the eighth
century A. D.

About the same period the fleet of Java raided the coast of
Annum as far as Tonkin in the north. The Chinese annals refer
to an invasion of the "March of Tran-nam in 767 A.D. by the
people of Co-Ion (Kuen-Luen) and of Daba', which Maspero
identifies with Cho-p'o or Java. 8 In the inscriptions of the
kingdom of Champa (corresponding to Annam, south of Tonkin),
several references are made to naval raids by a foreign people,
and in one case the raiders are named 'forces coming by way of
sea from Java/ The first reference occurs in Po-Nagar stelae

1. B.E.F.E.O., Vol. XV, Part II, p. 87.

2. Maspero Le royaume de Champa, pp. 97-98 and p, 98 f. n. 4.
Da-ba may be equivalent to Arabic Djawag.

158 THE SAILENDRA EMPIRE

inscription of King Satyavarman dated 706 Saka (=784 A.D.).
It runs as follows 1 :

"In the Saka year, denoted by Kosa-nava-rtu (696=774
A.D.), ferocious, pitiless, dark-coloured people of other cities,
whose food was more horrible than that of the vampires, and
who were vicious and furious like Yama, came in ships, took
away the Mukhalinga of the God (Sambhu, established at
Kauth&ra by Vicitrasagara), and set fire to the abode of the God,
as the armed crowds of Daityas did in heaven."

The same event is referred to in another inscription as
follows 8 : "Multitudes of vicious cannibals coming from other
countries by means of ships carried away the images."

The next reference occurs in Yang Tikuh stelae inscription
of Indravarman 1, dated 721 Saka (=799 A.D.). Speaking of
the temple of BhadradhipatlSvara, it says 8 that it was burnt by
the army of Java coming by means of ships, and became empty
in the Saka year 709 (=787 A.D.).

Here, again, we find the fleet of Java raiding the distant coast
of Champa during the last quarter of the eighth century A.D.
Although definite evidence is wanting, there are reasons to
believe that the successive naval raids overthrew the royal
dynasty of Champa. But even if it were so, the success was a
shortlived one. For a new dynasty soon established itself in
Champa*. On the whole, therefore, while there is nothing to
show that the fleet of Java gained any permanent material
success in Champa, the circumstances narrated above indicate
their power, prestige, and daring nature.

Now the question arises about the identity of Java mentioned
in the Cham record. It has usually been taken to stand for
Yavadvlpa, or the island of Java, but it may also be taken as
equivalent to Arabic Zabag, and thus identical with the Sailendra
empire. In the present instance, however, it makes but little

I. R. C. Majumdar Champa, Book III, p, 43.

3. Ibid,, p. 70. 3. Ibid., p. $o. 4. Ibid, Book J f Ch. V,

StJVARNADVIPA 150

difference whether we identify it with the one or the other ; for,
as we have seen, Java was at that time either included within
the empire of the Sailendras, or ruled by a member of the same
dynasty, and as such there must have been a close association
between the two, so far at least as the foreign policy was
concerned. On the whole, therefore, we are justified in regar-
ding the naval raids as ultimately emanating from the empire
of the Sailendras. 1

The emergence of the Sailendras as the leading naval power
in Indonesia constituted an international event of outstanding
importance. The Arabian merchant Sulayman concludes his
story, quoted above, by saying that "this incident raised the
king (of Zabag) in the estimation of the rulers of India and
China."

The evidences, collected above, leave no doubt that
the empire of the Sailendras reached the high-water mark
of its greatness and glory in the eighth century A. D. The
following century saw the beginning of the inevitable
decline. By the middle of the ninth century A.D., their
supremacy was successfully challenged by the two great
neighbouring states of Cambodia and Java. We have
already seen the determined attempt of Jayavarman II of
Cambodia (802-869 A. D.) to throw off the yoke of the
Sailendras, and there is no doubt that he was entirely successful
in that respect. There is no evidence that the Sailendras
had any pretension of supremacy over that kingdom after
Jayavarman's time.

About the same time, the Sailendras lost their hold on
Java. Unfortunately we know almost nothing of the circum-

i. It is, of course, possible to regard the naval raiders as mere
pirates belonging to no country in particular. But the pointed references
to the raiders as "nnvagatairJava-'vala-samghais" seems to exclude this
possibility. The expression implies 'an organised force sent from Java
by way of sea,' and should more reasonably be taken as belonging to
the ruling authority in Java,

160 THE SAILENDRA EMPIRE

stances under which the Sailendras lost Java. It is also
difficult to assign even any approximate date for this event.
If king Samarottunga, who issued the Kedu inscription in
A. D. 847, may be identified with king Samaragravira of the
Nalandii copper-plate, we may presume that the authority of
the Sailendra kings had continued in Java till at least the middle
of the ninth century A. D. But this identification cannot be
held as certain, the more so because a later king of East Java
also bore the title Samarottunga. In any case the Sailendras
must have lost their authority in Java by 879 A.D., as we
find that Central Java was then being ruled over by a king of
Java belonging to a different dynasty. The middle of the ninth
century A. D. may thus be regarded as the approximate limit
of the Sailendra supremacy in Java 1 .

But, in spite of the loss of Cambodia and Java, the
Sailendra empire retained its position as a great power, and,
to the outside world, it was still the greatest political power
in the Pacific region.

In addition to the Nalanda copper-plate, which describes
the Sailendras as rulers of Suvarnadvipa or Malayasia, our
knowledge of them about this period is derived from the
accounts left by Arab writers, who, as already remarked, refer
to their country as Zabag or Zabaj. Jbn Khordadzbeh (844-848
A. D.) says that the king of Zabag is named Maharaja. His
daily revenue amounts to two hundred Jiians of gold. He
prepares a solid brick of this gold and throws it into water,
saying 'there is my treasure/ A part of this revenue, about
50 mans of gold per (Jay, is derived from cock-fight. A leg
of the cock which wins belongs by right to him, and the
owner of the cock redeems it by paying its value in gold 8 .

The Arab merchant SulaymSn (851 A. D.) gives a more
detailed account of the empire of Zabag. He says : "Kalah-bar

1. The history of the Sailendras in Java will be further discussed
in Bk. Ill, Ch. I.

2. J,A., Ser. n. Vol. XX (1922), pp. 52-53-

SUVARNADVIPA 161

(i.e., the country round the Isthmus of Kra in the Malay
Peninsula) is a part of the empire of Zabag which is situated
to the south of India. Kalah-bar and Zabag are governed by
the same king 1 ."

The same account is repeated by Ibn al-Faklh (902 A.D.)
who adds that there is no country in the south after Zabag, and
that its king is very rich*.

Ibn Rosteh, writing about 903 A. D., remarks : "The great
king (of Zabag) is called Maharaja i.e., king of kings. He is
not regarded as the greatest among the kings of India, because
he dwells in the islands. No other king is richer or more
powerful than he, and none has more revenue 3 ."

These Arab writers, as well as several others, such as Isfcak
bin Imran (died about 907 A. D.) 4 and Ibn Serapion 8 (c. 950
A.D.), also refer to merchandises exported from Zabag and tell
us marvellous tales of the country.

But the most detailed account of Zabag is furnished by
Aba Zayd Hasan who published, about A. D. 916, the account
originally written by Sulayman in 851 A. D., with additional
remarks of his own. He applies the name Zabag both to
the kingdom and its capital city. His remarks may be
summed up as follows :

"The distance between Zabag and China is one month's
journey by sea-route. It may be even less if the winds are
favourable.

"The king of this town has got the title Maharaja. The
area of the kingdom is about 900 (square) Parsangs. The

1. Ibid., p. 53. The reference to tin mines in Kalah (or Kelah)
localises it definitely in the tin-bearing tract of the country extending from
southern Tennasserim through the greater part of Malay Peninsula.
Its identification with Kedah is at least highly probable. (Blagden in
J. Str. Br. R.A.S., No. 81, p. 24).

2. Ibid., pp. 54-55. 3 , ibid., p . 55.
4. Ferrand Textes, Vol. I. pp. 53, 288. 5. ibid., p. 112.

21

162 THE SAILENDRA EMPIRE

king is also overlord of a large number of islands extending
over a length of 1000 Parsangs or more. Among the king-
doms over which he rules are the island called Sribuza
(=Srl-Vijaya) with an area of about 400 (square) Parsangs,
and the island called Ram! with an area of about 800 (square)
Parsangs. The maritime country of Kalah, midway between
Arabia and China, is also included among the territories of
Maharaja. The area of Kalah is about 80 (square) Parsangs.
The town of Kalah is the most important commercial centre
for trade in aloe, camphor, sandalwood, ivory, tin, ebony, spices,
and various other articles. There was a regular maritime
intercourse between this port and Oman.

"The Maharaja exercises sovereignty over all these islands.
The island in which he lives is very thickly populated from
one end to the other.

"There is one very extraordinary custom in Zabag. The
palace of the king is connected with the sea by a shallow lake.
Into this the king throws every morning a brick made of solid
gold. These bricks are covered by water during tide, but
are visible during ebb. When the king dies, all these bricks
are collected, counted, and weighed, and these are entered in
official records. The gold is then distributed among the
members of the royal family, generals, and royal slaves according
to their rank, and the remnant is distributed among the poor 1 ".

Mas'udl has given some details about Zabag in his work,
"Meadows of gold" (043 A. D.). Some of his relevant remarks
are summed up below 2 .

1. India is a vast country extending over sea and land
and mountains. It borders on the country of Zabag, which
is the kingdom of the Maharaja, the king of the islands.

1. J. A., H-XX. pp. 56ff. The account concludes with the story
of the struggle between the king of Zabag and the king of Khmer which
has already been quoted above.

2. Ferrand Textes, vol. I. Figures within brackets refer to pages
of this volume.

SUVARNADVlPA 163

Zabag, which separates India from China, is comprised within
the former country, (p. 92.)

2. The kingdom of Khmer is on the way to the kingdoms
of the Maharaja, the king of the islands of Zabag, Kalah and
Sirandib. (Here follows the story, quoted above, of the
expedition of the Maharaja against the Khmer king and the
death of the latter.) (p. 03.)

3. (The story of tho throwing of a gold bar every day
into the lake near the palace.) (p. 93.)

4. Formerly there was a direct voyage between China
and ports like Slraf and Oman. Now the port of Kalah
serves as the meeting place for the mercantile navies of the
two countries, (p. 96.)

5. In the bay of Champs!, is the empire of the Maharaja, the
king of the islands, who rules over an empire without limit and
has innumerable troops. Even the most rapid vessels could not
complete in two years a tour round the isles which are under
his possession. The territories of this king produce all sorts
of spices and aromatics, and no other sovereign of the world
has as much wealth from the soil. (p. 99.)

6. In the empire of the Maharaja is the island of Sribuza
(Srl-Vijaya) which is situated at about 400 Parsangs from
the continent and entirely cultivated. The king possesses also
the islands of Zabag, Ramnl, and many other islands,
and the whole of the sea of Champa is included in his
domain, (p. 100.)

7. The country, of which Mandurapatan is the capital,
is situated opposite Ceylon, as the Khmer country is in
relation to the isles of the Maharaja, such as Zabag and others,
(p. 107.)

The next in point of time is the account given by Ibrahim
bin Wasif Sah (c. 1000 A. D.) : "Zabag is a large archipelago,
thickly populated, and with abundant means of livelihood.
I( is said that the Chinese, ruined by foreign invasions and

164 THE SAILENDRA EMPIRE

civil wars, came and pillaged all the islands of the Archipelago
and all their towns.

"The islands of Zabag are numerous ; one of them, known
as Sribuza, has an area of 400 (square) Parsangs 1 ".

Alberuni (c. 1030 A. D.) says : "The eastern islands in
this ocean, which are nearer to China than to India, are the
islands of the Zabaj, called by the Hindus Suvarna-dvlpa
i. e., the gold islands. . . . The islands of the Zabaj are called
the Gold Country (Suvarna-dvlpa), because you obtain much
gold as deposit if you wash only a little of the earth of that
country/ 8

The accounts of the Arab writers quoted above leave no
doubt that a mighty empire, comprising a large part of the
Malay Archipelago and Malay Peninsula, flourished from the
middle of the ninth to at least the end of the tenth century A.D.
Thus we must hold that even after the loss of Java and
Cambodia, the Sailciidra empire continued to flourish for more
than a century, and Sribuza or Srl-Vijaya formed an important
and integral part of it.

The Chinese annals contain references to a kingdom called
San-fo-tsi which undoubtedly stands for the Sailendra empire.
We learn from them that several embassies of the Sailendras
visited China during the tenth century A.D.

In the year 904 or 905 A.D. the governor of the capital
city was sent as an ambassador with tribute. The Chinese
emperor honoured him with a title which means "the General
who pacifies the distant countries." 3

In the 9th month of the year 960 A.D., king Si-li hou-ta
Hia-li-tan sent an ambassador named Li-tche-ti with tributes,
and this was repeated in the summer of 961. A.D. During the
winter of 961 A.D. the tribute was sent by a king called

1. J.A., ii-XX (1922), pp. 63-64.

2. Sachau 'Alberuni, Vol. I, p. 210, Vol. II, p. 106.

3. J.A., n-XX (19*2), p. 17, f.n.

SUVAKNADVlPA 165

Che-li Wou-ye. These ambassadors reported that the kingdom
of San-fo-tsi was also called Sien-lieou. 1

In the spring of 962 A.D. the king Che-li Wou-ye sent to
China an embassy, composed of three ambassadors, with tribute.
They brought back several articles from China.*

Four embassies were sent in 971, 972, 974, and 975 A.D.

In 980 and 983 A.D., the king Hiu-tchc sent ambassadors
with tribute. Hia-tche probably stands for the old Malay
word 'Haji' which means king. 3

The trade relation with China was also revived in the tenth
century. In 971 A.D. a regular shipping-house was opened
at Canton, and two more were later opened at Hangchu and
Ming-chu. We are told that foreign merchants from Arabia,
Malay Peninsula, San-fo-tsi, Java, Borneo, Philippine, and
Champa frequented these places. 41

In the year 980 A.D., a merchant from San-fo-tsi arrived
at Swatow with a cargo which was carried to Canton. 5

Again, in the year 985 A.D., the master of a ship came and
presented products of his country. 8

The Arabic and Chinese accounts thus both testify to the
political and commercial greatness of the Sailcndra empire
throughout the tenth century A.D. Unfortunately we possess
very few details of the political history of the kingdom. The

1. Ibid., p. 17, notes 2 and 3. It is difficult to trace the original
of the proper names given in Chinese. Ferrand suggests the following :

(a) Si-li hou-ta Hia-li-tan>=(Malais) Sen kuda Haridana.

(b) Che-li Wou-ye = ri Wuja. Takakusu, however, takes the
first name as ri-Kuta-harit or ri-Gupta-harita (Records, p. XLII).
Ferrand further amends Sien-lieou as Mo-lieou and regards it as
equivalent to Malayu. Needless to say, these suggestions are purely
problematical and far from convincing.

2. J.A., n-XX ;(iQ22), p. 17. f.n. 4. According to Ma-Twan-lin
this embassy was sent by the king Li-si-lin-nan-mi-je-lai (i.e., Mi-je-lai,
son of Li-si-lin).

3. Ibid., p. 18. 4. Rockhill in T'oung Pao, 15 (1914), p. 420.
5. J.A., ii-XX (1922), p. 18 ; Groeneveldt-Notes, p. 64. 6. Ibid.

166 THE SAILENDRA EMPIRE

only facts of outstanding importance that arc known to us, in
outline only, are its relations with Java and with the Cola
kingdom in South India.

The History of the Sung dynasty gives us the first
definite information that we possess regarding the relation
between the Sailendras and Java since the latter kingdom
freed itself from the control of the former. We learn from
this chronicle that in 988 A.D. an ambassador from San-fo-tsi
came with tribute to China. He left the imperial capital
in 990 A.D., but, on reaching Canton, learnt that his
country had been invaded by Cho-p'o (Java). So he
rested there for about a year. In the spring of 992 AJ). the
ambassador went with his navy to Champa, but as he did not
receive any good news there, he came back to China and
requested the emperor to issue a decree making San-fo-tsi a
protectorate of China 1 .

We hardly know anything about the origin and incidents
of this hostility, which took a serious turn in the last decade
of the tenth century A. D. But it is not difficult to imagine
that the relations between the two countries had long been
hostile, and perhaps there were intermittent fights ; or it may
be that DharmavamSa, the king of Java, felt powerful enough
to follow an imperial policy like his neighbour, and this
naturally brought about a collision between the two. But
whatever that may be, there is no doubt about the result of
the struggle. To begin with, the king of Java had splendid
success and invaded the enemy's country. But his success
was neither decisive nor of a permanent character. In 1003
A.D. San-fo-tsi recovered her strength sufficiently to send an
embassy to China without any hindrance from Java a . In 1006
AJD. the kingdom of Java was destroyed by a catastrophe, the
exact nature of which will be discussed in a subsequent chapter 8 .
So the Sailendra empire was freed from any further fear from
that quarter.

I. Ibid , pp. 18-19. 2. Ibid., p. 19. 3. Bk. Ill, Chap, II,

Chapter II.

THE STRUGGLE BETWEEN THE
SAILENDKAS AND THE COLAS

In the eleventh century A.D., the one outstanding fact
in the history of the Sailendras, known to us, is a long-drawn
struggle with the powerful Cola rulers of South India.

The Cola state was one of the three kingdoms in South
India which flourished from a hoary antiquity. It extended
along the Coromandcl coast, and its traditional boundaries
were the Pennar river in the north, the Southern Vellaru
river on the south, and up to the borders of Coorg on the west.
The rise of the Pallavas within this area kept the Colas in
check for a long time. But the Colas re-asserted their
supremacy towards the close of the ninth century A. D.
With the accession of Parantaka I in 907 A. D., the Colas
entered upon a career of aggressive imperialism. By a
succession of great victories Rajaraja the Great (985-1014 A.D.)
made himself the lord paramount of Southern India. His
still more famous son Rajendra Cola (1014-1044 A.D.) 1 raised
the Cola power to its climax, and his conquests extended
as far as Bengal in the north.

The Colas were also a great naval power and this naturally
brought them into contact with Indonesia.

At first there existed friendly relations between the Cola
kings and the Sailcndra rulers. This is proved by an inscrip-

i. Rajendra Cola was formally associated with his father, in the
administration of the empire, in 1012 A.D., and his regnal years are
counted from this date. The dates of Ccla kings in this chapter, where
they differ from those given by V. A. Smith, are accepted on the
authority of Prof. K. A. N. Sastri ( Sastri Colas ).

168 SAILENDRAS AND THE COLAS

tion, which is engraved on twenty-one plates, and is now
preserved in the Leiden Museum along with another of three
plates. The two records are known respectively as the
Larger Leiden Grant and the Smaller Leiden Grant, as their
find-place is not known 1 .

The Larger Leiden Grant is written partly in Sanskrit, and
partly in Tamil. The Tamil portion tells us that the Cola king
Rajaraja, the Great, granted, in the twenty-first year of his reign,
the revenues of a village for the upkeep of the shrine of Buddha
in the Culamanivarma-vihara which was being constructed
by Culamanivarman, king of Kadaram 8 , at Nagapattana. After
the completion of the necessary preliminaries the deed of gift
was actually drawn up in the twenty-third year of the reign of
Rajaraja.

The Sanskrit portion tells us that Rajaraja RajakeSari-
varman (i.e. Rajaraja, the Great) gave, in the twenty-first year
of his reign, a village to the Buddha residing in the Culamani-
varma-vihara which was built at Naglpattana by iSrl-Mara-
vijayottungavarman in the name of his father Culamanivarman.
It further informs us that Mara-vijayottuiigavarman was born
in the Sailendra family, was the lord of SrI-visaya, had
extended the suzerainty of Kataha (Srl-visay-adhipatiiia
Katah-adlripatyam-atanrata), and had 'Makara as the emblem
of his banner' (Makaradhvajem}.

We also learn from the Sanskrit portion that after the
death of Rajaraja, his son and successor Madhurantaka, i.e.,
Rajendra Cola, issued this edict for the grant made by his
father.

It is obvious from these statements that king Culamani-
varman of Kataha commenced the construction of a Buddhist

1. Cf. B.K.I., Vol. 75, pp. 628 ff. The inscription was originally
edited in Arch. Surv. South India, Vol. IV, pp. 206 ff. A revised edition
is being published in Ep. Ind., Vol. XXII.

2. The name is also written as Ki^aram. The name written as
Cfl|amanivarman in Tamil character is equivalent to CGtfamanivarman.

SUVARNADVIPA 169

Vihara at Nagapattana, modern Negapatam, in or shortly
before the 21st year of Raja raja when a village was granted by
the Cola king for its upkeep. King Culamanivarman, however,
died shortly after, and the Vihara was completed by his son
and successor Mara-vijayottungavarman. Presumably, king
Rajaraja also died by that time, and the actual edict for the
grant was issued by Rajendra Cola.

The formal grant in the Tamil portion, although not drawn
up till the 23rd year of Rajaraja, does not mention Mara-
vijayottungavnrman, but refers only to Cfllamanivarman. This
fact might be taken to indicate that the latter died after this
date. But this is very problematical and no great stress need
be laid upon it.

This interesting record naturally recalls the Nalanda
copper-plate of the time of Devapuia. In both cases an Indian
king grants villages to a Buddhist sanctuary, erected in India
by a Sailendra king. Both furnish us with names of Sailcndra
kings not known from indigenous sources.

Fortunately the present inscription can be precisely dated,
for the 21st year of Rajaraja falls in 1005 A.D. We thus come
to know that king Cildamanivarman was on the throne in 1005
A.D., and was succeeded shortly after by his son Srl-Mara-
vijayottungavarman. To G. Coedfcs belongs the credit of
tracing these two names in the Chinese Annals 1 . The History
of the Sung dynasty gives us the following details about them 8 .

"In the year 1003 the king Se-li-chu-la-wu-iii-fii-ma-tiau-hwa
(Sri Cadamanivarmadeva) sent two envoys to bring tribute ;
they told that in their country a Buddhist temple had been
erected in order to pray for the long life of the emperor.

"In the year 1008 the king So-ri-ma-la-p'i (Sri-Mara-vi-
jayottungavarman) sent three envoys to present tribute".

Comparing the Chinese and Indian data we can easily put
the death of Cudamanivarman and the accession of his son

1. B.E.F.E.O., Vol. XVIII, No. 6. p. 7.

2. Groeneveldt-Notes, p. 65. J.A., ii-XX (1922), p. 19.
22

170 SAILENDRAS AND THE COLAS

Sri-Msra-vijayottungavarman some time between 1005 and
1008 A JD. So the relations between the Cola and Sailendra
kings were quite friendly at the commencement of the eleventh
century A.D.

As noted above, the Sanskrit portion of the Leiden Grant
refers to Srl-Mara-vijayottungavarman as extending the
suzerainty of Kataha, and lord of Sri-Visaya, while the Tamil
portion refers to his father only as the king of KadSra or
Kidara. In spite of Ferrand's criticism 1 there is much to be
said in support of the view of G. Coed&s, that Kataha, Kad&ra
or Kidara are all equivalents of Keddah in the western part of
the Malay Peninsula 8 . It would then follow, that while the
king Mara-vijayottungavarmadeva ruled over both Srl-Vijaya
and Malay Peninsula, as is also testified to by the Arab writers,
the Colas regarded the Sailendras rather as rulers of Malay
Peninsula, with suzerainty over Srl-Vijaya.

There were also commercial relations between the two
countries. An old Tamil poem refers to ships with merchandise
coming from Kalagam to Kavirippumpaddinam, the great
port situated at the mouth of the Kaveri river 3 . Kalagam,
which a later commentator equates with Kadaram, is almost
certainly to be identified with Keddah which the Arabs
designate as Kala.

The friendly relation between the Cola kings and the
Sailendra rulers did not last long. In a few years hostilities
broke out, and Rajendra Cola sent a naval expedition against
his mighty adversary beyond the sea. The details preserved
in the Cola records leave no doubt that the expedition
was crowned with brilliant success, and various parts of the
empire of the Sailendras were reduced by the mighty
Cola emperor. The reason for the outbreak of hostility, and
the different factors that contributed to the stupendous success

i. J.A., ii XX (1922), pp. 50-51. 2. Op. cit, pp. 19 ff,

3. Quoted by Kanaksabhai in Madras Review (August, 1902).
Also cf. K. Aiyangar's remarks in J. I. H., Vol. II, p. 347.

SUVARNADVIPA 171

of the most arduous undertaking of the Cola emperor,
are unknown to us. Fortunately, we have a fair idea of the
time when the expedition took place, and we also know the
name of the Sailendra king who was humbled by the
Indian emperor. These and other details arc furnished by
the records of the Colas, and a short reference to these
is necessary for a proper understanding of the subject.

1. Several inscriptions at Malurpatna, dated in the 23rd
year of king Rajaraja, record that he was pleased to destroy

the ships (at) Kandalur Salai and twelve thousand

ancient islands of the sea 1 .

The 23rd year of Rajaraja corresponds to A. D. 1007.
It is, therefore, reasonable to presume that the Colas possessed
a powerful navy, and started on a deliberate policy of making
maritime conquests early in the eleventh century A. D.

2. The Tiruvalangadu plates, dated in the 6th year of
Rajendra Cola (1017-8 A. D.), contain the following verse 2 :

1. Nos 128, 130, 131, 132 of Channapatna Taluq, Ep. Cam.,
Vol. IX, Transl., pp. 159-161.

2. S. I. I., Vol. Ill, Part III, pp. 383 ff. The inscription consists
of 271 lines in Sanskrit and 524 lines in Tamil. Both the parts are
expressly dated in the 6th year of Rajendra Cola. But the Sanskrit
portion is usually regarded as being engraved at a later date. When
the inscription was first noticed in the Ann. Rep. Arch. Surv. (1903-4.
pp. 234-5), the following remarks were made: "The Tamil portion of
Tiruvalangadu plates is dated in the 6th year of Rajendra Cola's reign
(A.D. ioi6-i7)/ and the Sanskrit portion also refers to the grant having
been made in the same year. But the conquest of Kajaha, which, as we
know from other inscriptions of the king, took place in the 15111 or i6th
year of his reign, is mentioned in the Sanskrit portion. It has, therefore,
to be concluded that, as in the Leyden Grant, the Sanskrit Prafastt of
the Tiruvalangadu plates was added subsequently to the Tamil portion
which actually contains the king's order (issued in the 6th year of his
reign)." This argument has, however, very little force, for, as we now
know, there is no reason to place the expedition to Kajaha in the J5th or
1 6th year, and, as we shall see later, the conquest of Ka^aram is referred
to in a record of the nth year, and an inscription of the i3th year of
the king refers to these oversea conquests in detail-

172 SAILENDRAS AND THE COLAS

"Having conquered Kataha with (the help of) his valiant
forces that had crossed the ocean, (and) having made all kings
bow down (before him), this (king) (Rajendra Cola) protected
the whole earth for a long time" (v. 123).

3. The preambles of inscriptions dated in the regnal
years 11, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 29, 30, and 32 of Rajendra Cola

Hultzsch, while editing the inscription, expresses the same view in
a modified manner. Referring to the conquests recorded in the Sanskrit
portion he observes : "These conquests of Rajendra Cola are mostly
recorded in the historical introductions to his Tamil inscriptions dated
from and after the I3th year of his reign. It may here be noted that
the Tamil introduction given in lines 131 to 142 below is naturally the
shorter one, since it belongs to the sixth year of the king's reign ; and
since it does not include a list of all the conquests mentioned above, it has
been suggested that the Sanskrit portion of the grant which includes the
conquests of the later years must be a subsequent addition." (S. /. /.
Vol. Ill, Fart III, p. 389).

It must be observed, however, that none of the records of Rajendra
Cola gives any specific date for any of his conquests, and we can only
conclude that the conquests must have been made before the date of the
inscription which first records them. It is, therefore, too risky to assert
that any particular conquest is of a later date.

On the other hand, a comparison of the records shows that they
contain stereotyped official list of conquests, repeated in exactly the same
words, with additions from time to time in records of later years. This,
no doubt, is a strong argument in favour of the belief that the 'additional
conquests' 1 took place after the date of the last inscription which does
not mention them.

Judging from the above, the conquest of Ka$aha in the sixth year
of Rajendra Cola is doubtful as it is not included in the list of conquests
in inscriptions dated in the 9th and I3th years of his reign. As will
be shown below, the conquest of Kataha, with a number of other states
beyond the sea, is mentioned in inscriptions dated in the 13th and
subsequent years of the reign.

If, however, the Sanskrit portion of the Tiruvalangadu plates were
composed after these conquests, it is very difficult to believe that the
author, who has devoted 40 verses to the conquests of Rajendra Cola,
would have merely referred to these mighty exploits in only one verse.

SUVARNADVlPA 173

refer to him as ruling over Gange (or Gangai), the East country,
and Kadaram. 1

4. An inscription at the temple of Malur in the Bangalore
district, dated in the 13th year of R&jendra Cola (A.D. 1024-5),
gives a detailed account of his oversea conquests."

5. These details are also repeated in many other
inscriptions dated from the 14th to 27th and 29th to 31st years
of Rajendra Coladeva.

6. These details, as given in the Tan j ore inscription
of Rajendra Cola, dated in his 19th year (A.D. 1030-31), are
quoted below : 3

'And (who) ( Rajendra Cola ) having despatched many
ships in the midst of the rolling sea and having caught
Sangrama-vijayottimgavarman, the king of Kadaram, along
with the rutting elephants of his army, (took) the large heap
of treasures, which (that king) had rightfully accumulated ;
( captured ) the ( arch called ) Vidyadhara-torana at the
"war-gate" of the extensive city of the enemy; Srl-Vijaya
with the "Jewel-gate," adorned with great splendour and the
"gate of large jewels ;" Pannai, watered by the river ; the
ancient Malaiyur (with) a fort situated on a high hill ;
M&yirudingam, surrounded by the deep sea (as) a moat ;
IlangaSogam undaunted (in) fierce battles; Mappappajam, having

On the whole, therefore, until more specific evidence is available,
we accept the clear deduction from the inscription that a naval expedi-
tion was sent to Kataha before the sixth year, and presumably the
same is referred to in the record of the nth year. For reasons given
below, it has to be distinguished from the more elaborate and successful
expeditions of the I3th year, referred to in Malur and Tanjore
Inscriptions.

1. For these and other inscriptions of Rajendra Cola referred to
below, cf. the list of inscriptions, arranged according to regnal year, in
'Sastri-Colas,' pp. 5300.

2. No. 84 of Channapatna Taluq (Ep. Cam., IX, pp. 148-50),

3. S. I. I., Vol. II, pp. 105 ff. (Some corrections were made later,
in Ep., Ind., Vol. IX, pp. 231-2) ; cf. also 'Sastri-Colas' pp. 254-5.

174 &AILENDRAS AND THE COLAS

abundant (deep) waters as defence ; Mevilimbangam, having fine
walls as defence ; Valaippanduj-u, possessing (both) cultivated
land (?) and jungle ; Talaittakkolam, praised by great men
(versed in) the sciences ; Madamalifigam, firm in great and
fierce battles ; IlamurideSam, whose fierce strength was subdued
by a vehement (attack^ ; M&nakkavaram whose flower-gardens
(resembled) the girdle (of the nymph) of the southern region ;
KadSram, of fierce strength, which was protected by the
neighbouring sea/

7. In an inscription at Mandikere, dated 1050 A.D.,
Rajendra Cola is said to have conquered Gangai in the north,
Ilafigai in the south, Mahodai on the west, and Kadaram on
the east 1 .

8. The Kanyakumarl inscription (verse 72) of the 7th
year of Virar&jendra contains the following statement about
Rajendra Cola.

"With (the help) of his forces which crossed tho seas,

he (Rajendra Cola) burnt Kajaha that could not be set

fire to by others*".

In the light of the above records, the long passage in the
Tanjore inscription (No. 6) seems to indicate that Rajendra
Cola defeated the king of Kadara, took possession of various
parts of his kingdom, and concluded his compaign by taking
Kadara itself. In other words, the various countries, mentioned
in the passage, were not independent kingdoms, but merely
the different subject-states of SaAgr&ma-vijayottungavarman,
ruler of Kadara and ^n-Vijaya 5 .

We must, therefore, try to identify these geographical
names, with a view to understand correctly the exact nature

1. No. 25 of Nelamangaia Taiuq (Ep. Cam,, p. 33).

2. Travancore Archaeological Series, Vol. Ill, Part I, p. 157.
Ep. Ind., Vol. XVIII, pp. 45-46, 54-

3. This view, originally propounded by Hultzsch ( cf. p. 173,
. n. 3), is accepted by Venkayya (Arch. Surv. Burma. 1909-10, p, 14) and

(B.E.F.E.O, Vol, XVIII, No. 6, pp. 5-6).

SUVABNADVlPA 175

of Rajendra Cola's conquests, and, indirectly, also of the empire
of Sangr&ma-vijayottuftga.

It is needless now to refer to the various suggestions and
theories in this respect, that wore made from time to time,
till the ingenious researches of Coedfcs put the whole matter in
a clear light 1 . Although some of the conclusions of Ccedfcs
are not certainly beyond all doubt, his views are a great
improvement on his predecessors, and we cannot do better
than accept his results, at least as a working hypothesis. We
therefore sum up below the views put forward by Coedfes
with some modifications necessitated by later researches*.

PANNAI. This country is probably identical with Pane
which Nagarakrtagama includes among the states of Sumatra,
subordinate to Majapahit. Gerini places it at modern Pani
or Panci on the eastern side of the island of Sumatra 8 .

MALAIYUR. This is, no doubt, the same as the country
known as Malayu, which is sometimes written with a V at
the end (as in this instance and in some Arab texts), and
sometimes without it. The identification of this place has
formed a subject of keen and protracted discussion*. It has
been located both in the eastern as well as in the western
coast of Sumatra, and even in the southern part of Malay
Peninsula. We learn from I-tsing that it was fifteen days'

1. B.E.F.E.O., Vol. XVIII, No. 6. For previous theories, cf. S.I.I.,
Vols. II, p. 106 III, pp. 194-5 i Ann. Rep, Arch. Surv. 1898-99, p. 17 ;
1907-8, p. 233 ; Madras Review, 1902, p. 251 Arch. Surv. Burma, 1906-7,
p. 19 ; 1909-10, p. 14 ; 1916-17, p. 25.

2. These are indicated by references to later authorities in footnotes.
Unless otherwise indicated, the statements in the text are based upon
Ccedes' article (op. cit).

3. Gerini Researches, p. 513.

4. Pelliot, B.E.F.E.O., IV, pp. 326 ff. ; Gerini Researches, pp.
528 ff, ; Ferrand, J.A., 1I-XI, (1918), pp. 391 ff., and II-XII, (1918)., pp.

176 SAILENDRAS AND THE COLAS

Journey by sea from SrI-Vijaya 1 and was conquered by this
state some time between 672 and 705 A.D.

The Dutch scholars, however, agree in identifying it with
Jambi*.

MlYIRUDINGAM. Taking the first syllable ma as
equivalent to Sanskrit maha, Yirudihgam has been identified
with Je-le-ting of Chau Ju-kua. Schlcgel identified this
place with Jcluion in the island of Banka, 8 while Gerini
proposed various identifications, viz., with (1) Jelutong at the
south-west of Jambi, (2) Jelutong in Johorc, and (3) Jelutong in
Selangort. Coedfcs concludes from a passage of Chau Ju-kua's
book that it must be looked for in the centre of the Malay
Peninsula, and belongs to the northernmost group of states
(in the Malay Peninsula) which wore subordinate to the
Sailendra empire. Rouffaer, on the other hand, locates it in
the extreme south-east of the Peninsula near Cape Rumenia 5 .

ILANGASOGAM. For the identification of this place, see
ante pp. 71 ff.

MA-PPAPPALAM. Vonkayya was the first to point out
that this country is mentioned in Mahavamsa". There
it is referred to as a port in the country of Ramaiinadesa.
But as the authority of the king of Pagan extended far to
the south, the location of this place in the western part of
the Isthmus of Kra is not barred out. Rouffaer identifies it
with 'Great Pahang".

1. Ccedes says that according to I-tsing Malayu was in the imme-
diate neighbourhood (voisinage immediat) of Che-li-fo-che. This is
hardly accurate.

2. Rouffaer, B.K.I., Vol. 77 (1921), pp. u ff. See ante, p. 120.

3. T'oung Pao (1901), p. 134, 4. Gerini-Researches, pp. 627, 826.

5. Rouffaer, B.K. I,, Vol. 77 (1921), pp. n ff.

6. Ann. Rep. Arch. Surv., 1898-9, p. 17 ; Arch. Surv. Burma, 1909-
10, p. 14.

7. B.K.I., Vol. 77 (192 1), p. 83-

SUVARNADVlPA 177

MEVILIMBANGAM. M. Sylvain L^vi identifies it with
Karmaranga, the Kama-larika of Hiuen Tsang, and places it in
the Isthmus of Ligor 1 .

VALAIPPANDURU. Rouffaer identifies it with Pandurang
or Phanrang 8 , but this is very doubtful.

TALAITTAKKOLAM. It is almost certain that the
country is identical with Takkola of Milindapanha and Takola
of Ptolemy, the word 'Talai' in Tamil signifying 'head' or
'chief . It must be located in the Isthmus of Kra or a little
to the south of it 3 .

MA-DAMALINGAM. A short inscription found in
Caiya refers to a country called Tambralinga, which is to
be located on the eastern side of the Malay Peninsula, between
the Bay of Bandon and Nagar Sri Dharmaraja (Ligor).
Damalingam has been identified with Tambralingam, ma being
equivalent to maha. It is evidently the same as Tan-ma-ling
which Chau Ju-kua includes among the tributary states of
San-fo-tsi.

ILlMUEIDESAM. Leaving aside the initial i which is
often prefixed in Tamil to foreign names, this can be easily
identified with Lamuri of the Arab geographers, and Lambri
of Marco Polo, situated in the northern part of Sumatra.
This country, under the form Lan-wu-li, is included among
the tributary states of San-fo-tsi by Chau Ju-kua.

Ml-NAKKAVARAM. Taking the first syllable as
equivalent to maha, the place can be easily identified with
Nikobar islands. The form Necuveran, used by Marco Polo,
closely resembles Nakkavaram.

1. J.A., Vol. CCIII (1923). See ante, pp. 74-5,

2. B.K.I., Vol. 77(1921), p. 82.

3. There is a vast literature on 'Takkola 1 . In addition to the
authorities cited by Coedes, I may refer to the views of S. Le*vi (Eftudes
Asiatiques, Vol. II, pp. 3 ff.).

23

178 ^AILENDRAS AND THE COLAS

KATAHA, KADlRAM, KIPlRAM. M. Ccedfes has
shown good grounds to prove that Kataha is the same as
Kie-tcha referred to by the Chinese as a port as early as 7th
century A.D. The same place is referred to in later times
as Kie-t'o and Ki-t'o, which may be equated to Kada and
Kido. As the change of a lingual' to liquid' was very common
in those days, the same place may be identified with Kalah
or Kilah of Arab geographers, and also with Ko-lo, which Kia
Tan places on the northern side of the Straits of Malacca,
and Sin t'ang Chou places at the south-east of P'an-p'an. All
these different names thus correspond, both phonetically and
geographically, to the modern Keddah. In a Tamil poem it is
referred to as Kalagam.

It has been seen above that Ilafigaogam is also to be
placed in Keddah. But as Ilangalogam or Gimong Jerai is
placed too far in the south of Keddah, Koddah is also
named separately. It may be mentioned that in
Nagarakrtagama both Keddah and Lenkasuka are named
as vassal states of Majapahit 1 .

The detailed discussion clearly shows that Rajcndra
Cola's conquests extended practically over the whole of the
eastern coast-region of Sumatra, and the central and southern
parts of Malay Peninsula, and included the two capital cities
Kataha and Srl-Vijaya. That the story of this victory is not
merely an imagination of the court-poets, but based on facts,
is proved, beyond all doubt, by the detailed references to the
vassal states. It is interesting to note that many of these
states are included in the Sailendra empire (San-fo-tsi) by
later Chinese authorities like Chau Ju-kua. a

The date of this decisive victory can be ascertained with
tolerable certainty. The Ins. No. 4, quoted above, shows that
it must have taken place not later than the 13th year of

1. Nagarakrtagama, Ch, 16, vv. 13-14*

2. Chau Ju-kua's account will be dealt with in the next chapter.

SUVARNADVIPA 179

Rfijendra Cola, Now, the Tirumalai inscription, 1 dated in
the same year, gives an account of his inland conquests,
but does not contain a word about his oversea conquests.
If, for example, one compares the Tanjorc Ins. (No. 6 above)
with the Tirumalai Ins., it would appear that the former
repeats, word for word, the entire passage in the latter,
describing the inland conquests of Rftjendra Cola, and then
adds the passage, quoted above, describing his oversea
conquests. It may, therefore, be reasonably presumed, that
these oversea conquests had not taken place at the time the
Tirumalai inscription was recorded. As the Tirumalai
inscription is dated in the 13th year, we may presume that
these conquests took place during the short interval between
the drafting of this record and that of the Inscription No. 4.
In other words, the oversea conquests of Rfijeudra Cola took
place in the 13th year of his reign, i.e., A.D. 1024-5, possibly
during its latter part. We may, therefore, provisionally accept
A.D. 1025 as the date of the great catastrophe which befell
the Sailcndra empire.

But, according to the plain interpretation of the Inscription
No. 2, quoted above, the hostility broke out much earlier, and
as early as 1017-18 A. D., or some time before it, a naval
expedition was sent against Kataha. There is nothing
surprising in it, for the Inscription No. 1, quoted above, clearly
shows that as early as 1007 A.D., the Colas had begun an
aggressive imperialistic policy to obtain mastery of the sead.

Although it is impossible now to ascertain exactly the
cause of either the outbreak of hostility, or the complete
collapse of the Sailendra power, reference may be made to
at least some important factors which contributed to the one
or the other. According to the Cola records, the conquest of
Kalinga and the whole eastern coast up to the mouth of the
Ganges was completed before the oversea expedition was
sent. Prof. S. K. Aiyangar concludes from a study of all

j. Ep. Ind., Vol. IX, pp. 229 ft.

180 SAILENDRAS AND THE COLAS

the relevant records that the actual starting-point of the
oversea expedition was in the coast-region of Kalinga. 1
Prof. Aiyangar infers from this fact that the conquest of
KaliAga was undertaken by Rajendra Cola as it "was parti-
cularly necessary in view of the oversea expedition that
must have become necessary *or some reason or other." He
holds further "that the Kaliiigas were possibly rivals in the
oversea empire in connection with which the oversea
expedition was actually undertaken. "

Now these two statements are somewhat vague and,
perhaps, even contradictory. But it is quite clear that the
conquest of Kalinga and the whole coastal region furnished
the Cola emperor with ample resources for his oversea
expedition. The mastery over the ports of Kalinga and
Bengal gave him well-equipped ships and sailors, accustomed
to voyage in the very regions which he wanted to conquer.
The naval resources of the whole of the eastern coast of
India were thus concentrated in the hands of Riijendra
Cola, and it was enough to tempt a man to get possession
of the territory, which served as the meeting ground of the
trade and commerce between India and the western countries
on the one hand, and the countries of the Far East on the
other. The geographical position of the Sailendra empire
enabled it to control almost the whole volume of maritime
trade between western and eastern Asia, and the dazzling
prospect which its conquest offered to the future commercial
supremacy of the Colas seems to be the principal reason of
the oversea expedition undertaken by Rajendra Cola. But
it is the conquest of the eastern coastal regions of India that
alone brought such a scheme within the range of practical
politics.

For the time being, the success of the Colas seemed
to be complete, but, from the very nature of the case, it
could not have possibly continued for long. The task of

I. J. I. H., Vol. II, p. 345-

SUVARNADVlPA 181

maintaining hold upon a distant country across the sea was
too great to be borne by the successors of Rfljendra Cola,
and they had too many difficulties at home to think of the
empire abroad. Rajftdhiraja, the eldest son of Rajendra,
succeeded him in A.D. 1044. His whole reign was a period of
unceasing struggle with the neighbouring powers, and he himself
fell fighting with the Calukyas at the battlefield of Koppam in
A.D. 1054. VirarSjendra, who ascended the throne in 1003 A.D.,
no doubt inflicted a severe defeat upon the Calukyas, but his
death in 1070 A. D., followed by a disputed .succession and
civil war, seriously weakened the prestige and authority of the
Colas. To make matters worse, Kalinga freed itself from the
yoke of the Colas, and this crippled the naval resources of
that power. The supremacy of the Colas was revived to a
considerable extent by KulottuAga Cola ( 1070-1119 ), the
grandson (daughter's son) of the famous Rajendra Cola. Ho
reconquered Kalinga and established peace and prosperity
over his extensive dominions during a long reign of 49 years 1 .

The relation between the Colas and the Sailendras, and
of both to China, during the period of nearly eighty years
(1044-1119 A. D.), of which a short historical sketch has been
given above, is referred to in Cola inscriptions and Chinese
documents. We give below a short summary of them before
drawing any general conclusions.

I. Cola Inscriptions

(a) The Perumber Ins. of Virari5jendradcva 8 dated in
his 7th year (A. D. 1069-70) states :

"Having conquered (the country of) Kadaram, (he) was
pleased to give (it) (back) to (its) king who worshipped (his)
feet (which bore) ankle-rings."

1. V. A. Smith, Early History of India (3rd. ed.), pp. 467-8. Some
of the dates are given on the authority of Prof. N. Sastri (Sastri-Colas

P- 293)-

2. S. I. I., Vol. III. Part II, p. 202. Prof. N. Sastri refers to this

and another record of the seventh year (175 of 1894). These, according

182 SAILENDRAS AND THE COLAS

(b) The Smaller Tamil Leiden Grant 1 dated in the 20th
ytar of Kulottunga Cola (1089-90 A. D.) says :

"At the request of the king of KidSra, communicated by
his envoys Rsjavidyadhara Samanta and Abhimanottuftga
Samanta, Kulottunga exempted from taxes the village
granted to the Buddhist monastery called Sailendra-
Cfldamanivarma-vihara (i. e. the one established by king
Calamanivarman as referred to in the Larger Leiden Grant )."

II. Chinese Documents

The following account is given by Ma-T wan-Lin in respect
of an embassy from Pagan in A. D. 1106 s .

(a) "The Emperor at first issued orders to accord them
the same reception and treat them in the same way as was
done in the case of the ambassadors of the Colas (Chu-lien).
But the President of the Board of Rites observed as follows :
"The Cola is a vassal of San-fo-tsi. That is why in the year
hi-ning (A. D. 1068-1077) it was thought good enough to write
to the king of that country on a strong paper with an envelope
of plain silk. The king of Pagan, on the other hand, is ruler of
a grand kingdom "

The History of the Sung dynasty gives the following
accounts of embassies from San-fo-tsi.

(b) "In 1017 the king Ha-ch'i-su-wu-chVp'u-mi sent
envoys with a letter in golden characters and tribute When

to him, ''mention that Virarajendra conquered Kaclaram on behalf of a
king who had come in search of his aid and protection, and handed it
over to him." (Sastri Colas, p. 332). Prof. Sastri does not explain
why he differs from Hultzsch. As regards the date of Virarajendra,
Sastri gives it as A.D. 1063-69 on p. 293, but says, on p. 338, that he
died in 1070 A.D. On p. 341, the ;th year of his reign is regarded as
equivalent to A.D. 1068-9.

1. Arch. Surv. of South India, Vol. IV, pp. 226 ff. A revised
edition is being published in Epigraphia Indica, Vol. XXII.

2. D'Hervey de Saint Denys Meridionaux, p. 586, quoted by
Cgtdts, B.E.F.E.O., XVIII, No. 6, p. 8, and Gerini-Researches, pp. 624-2$.

StVARNADVlPA 183

they went back, an edict was issued addressed to their king,
accompanied by various presents. 1 "

(c) "In 1028, the 8th month, the king Si-li-tieh-hwa (Sri
Deva?) sent envoys to carry tribute. The custom was that
envoys from distant countries, who brought tribute, got a
girdle adorned with gold and silver, but this time girdles
entirely of gold were given to them.'"

(d) "In 1067 an envoy, who was one of their high chiefs,
called Ti-hwa-ka-la, arrived in China. The title of Great
General who supports obedience and cherishes Renovation
was given to him, and he was favoured with an imperial
edict. 3 "

(e) "During the period Yuan-fung (1078-1085) envoys

came from the country bringing silver, pearls The

letter they brought was first forwarded to the court from
Canton, where they waited until they were escorted to the
capital. The Emperor remembered that they had come very
far, he gave them liberal presents and then allowed them
to return."

"The next year he gave them 64,000 strings of cash, 15,000
taels of silver and favoured the two envoys who had come
with honorary titles.*"

(f) "In 1082 three envoys came to have an audience from
the emperor and brought golden lotus-flowers etc. They all
received honorary titles according to their rank. 5 "

(g) "In 1083 three other envoys came, who all received
honorary titles according to their rank. "

1. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 65. Ferrand restores the name of the
king as "Haji Sumatrabhumi" the king of Sumatra (J. A., ii-XX,i922,
p. 19 and f.n. 3.

2. Groeneveldt Notes, pp. 65-66, Hoth Groeneveldt and Ferrand
(J. A., n-XX, 1922, p. 20) restore the name as rl Deva.

3. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 66. Both Groeneveldt and Ferrand
(op. cit.) restore the name as 'Deva Kala 1 . Coedes suggests 'DivSkara'
(B.E.F.E.O., Vol, XXI I J, p. 47o).

4. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 66. 5. Ibid. 6. Jbid.

184 SAILENDRAS AND THE COLAS

(h) "In the period Shau-Sheng (1094-97) they made their
appearance once again 1 ."

Cola embassies to China

(i) According to Ma-Twan-Lin, an embassy sent by
Lo-cha-lo-cha, king of Chu-lien, reached China in A.D. 1015".
Gerini restores this name as Rajaraja, (the Great) 8 .

(j) According to the Sung-Shih, two kings of Chu-lien
sent embassies with tribute to China : Shih-li-lo-cha-yin-to-lo-
chu-lo in A.D. 1033, and Ti-wa-kalo in A.D. 1077.* Prof.
S. K. Aiyangar has restored the first name as SrI-Rajcndra
Cola 8 .

Now, the fact, that some time before A.D. 1069-70 Vlra-
rajendra conquered Kadaram ( I-a ), shows that the country
had regained independence in the meanwhile/ It would
thus appear that, for nearly half a century since 1024-5, when
Rajendra Cola first conquered the country, the struggle
between the two continued with varying degrees of success.

Even the restoration of the king of Kadaram, after he had
acknowledged the suzerainty of Virarajcndra, does not
seem to have ended the struggle. On the one hand Kulottunga
Cola, the successor of Virarajcndra, claims to have destroyed
Kadaram, 7 on the. other hand the Chinese represent the Cola
power to be subordinate to Sri-Vijaya (Il-a). This conflicting
statement perhaps indicates the continuance of the struggle,
with alternate success and reverse of both parties.

The embassy from Kadaram to the Cola king in A.D. 1089-
90 (I-b) seems to mark the beginning of a new era of good-

1. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 67.

2. D'Hervey de Saint Denys Meridionaux, p. 574.
3 Gerini Researches, p. 609, f,n. 2.

4. J.R.A.S., 1896, p. 490 f.n. 5. J. I. H,, Vol. II, p. 353.

6. Prof. Aiyangar informs me, in a letter, that even RajadhirSja I,
the successor of Rajendra Cola, claimed conquest of Kadaram.

7. J.I. H,, Vol. II., p. 355.

SUVARNADVlPA 185

will and friendship between the two states. But if the
Chinese statement that "Cola is a vassal of San-fo-tsi" be true
of the year 1106 A.D., when it was recorded, it would indicate
the renewal of hostile relation between the two.

On the whole, it would be safe to assume that in spite of
the arduous nature of the task, the Cola emperors tried to
maintain their hold on the distant oversea empire, at least for
nearly a century. It would be too much to assume that they
could ever hope to exercise a rigid control over the distant land.
The utmost they could fairly expect was to have their suzer-
ainty acknowledged by the king of Kadaram. The latter must
have seized every possible opportunity to shake off even this
nominal sovereignty of the Colas. On the other hand, the
Coin emperors were unwilling to give up altogether their
pretension of suzerainty, and able monarchs like Vlrarajendra
and Kulottuiiga would occasionally fit out a naval expedition
to re-establish their authority beyond the sea.

In spite of the claims of the Colas to have destroyed
Kadaram, that kingdom never ceased to function as a separate
state. This is proved by the regular despatch of embassies to
the court of China throughout the eleventh century A. 1).
(II. b-h.).

The embassy of 1017 was sent by a king, whose Chinese
name has been restored by Fcrrand as Haji-Sumatrabhiimi or
king of Sumatrabhumi (Il-b). It must be regarded as some-
what unusual that this general term is substituted for the
proper name of the king which was used in case of the two
immediately preceding embassies.

The next embassy was sent in A. D. 1028 by a king, whose
name seems to correspond to Srl-Deva (II-c). The Cola
emperor must have conquered Kadaram shortly before this date,
and it may be presumed that this Srl-Deva refers to him or to
his viceroy. It is to be noted that the Chinese emperor showed
unusual honours to the envoy. This is perhaps due to the
mighty fame of Kajendra Cola, who himself sent an envoy to
the Chinese court, five years later (Il-i).
24

186 &AILENDRAS AND THE COLAS

The envoy, who visited the imperial court in 1067 A. D.,
is called Ti-hwa-ka-la (Il-d), and is described as a high
dignitary. It is interesting to note that the Cola king, who sent
an embassy to China 10 years later, was also called Ti-wa-ka-
lo (II-j). Now, this Cola king is undoubtedly Rajendra-Deva-
Kulottunga, and the Chinese name was made up of its second
and third parts (Deva-Kulo 1 ).

It is not impossible that this Kulottunga was also the
envoy, a high dignitary, who visited the imperial court in
1067 A.D. The history of the early years of Kulottunga lends
support to this view. He was the daughter's son of Rajendra
Cola, and his father was the ruler of Vengl. But when his
father died in c. A.D. 1061-2, he did not, or, perhaps, could
not succeed him, and indeed his position about that period is a
mystery. Prof. S. K. Aiyangar writes : "One would naturally
expect this Rajendra (Kulottunga) to succeed his father, when
he died in 1061-62 or the next year. In all the transactions
about the appointment of Vijayaditya VII as Viceroy of Vengl
we do not hear of the name of Kulottunga 9 ".

Then, again, the early inscriptions of Kulottunga affirm
that he "gently raised, without wearying (her) in the least, the
lotus-like goddess of the earth residing in the region of the
rising sun." Prof. 8. K. Aiyangar, although unaware of the
identity of the two names Ti-wa-ka-lo (the Cola king) and
Ti-hwa-ka-la, the envoy of San-fo-tsi, remarked as follows on
the above inscription : "This land of the rising sun cannot well
be the country of Vengl, and if the conquest of part of Burmah
(sic) by Rajendra I is accepted, as it must now be, this would
only mean that Rajendra Kulottunga distinguished himself as a
prince in the eastern exploits of his grandfather, cither during

1. This identification was proposed by Prof. S. K. Aiyangar
(J. I. H., Vol. II, p. 353).

2. 'Ancient India', p. 129. For further discussion on this point
cf. Sastri-Colas, Chap. XII.

SUVAKNADVlPA 187

Rajendra Cola's reign or under Virarajendra when he
reconquered Kadaram 1 ".

For 'Burmah' in tho above passage we must now read
Kadaram. Now, since Kulottunga ruled till 1119 A. D.,
it is impossible to believe that he was old enough in A. D.
1024-5 to accompany his grandfather Rajendra Cola. The
reference is therefore possibly to the expedition of Vira-
rajendra which took place some time before A. D.
1069-70 (I-a). This fits in with the date of the embassy,
viz., A. D. 1067.

If this view be correct, we must hold that Virarajendra's
conquest was an effective one, and, for some time at least,
the Colas definitely occupied the kingdom of Kadarani.
Kulottunga evidently held a very high position in the conquered
province, and possibly paid a visit to China as an ambassador
from Kadaram, with a view to establish a friendly relation with
that power. All these, however, must be regarded as pure
hypotheses for the present.

Kulottunga must have returned to India shortly after,
as he ascended the Cola throne in 1070 A, D., and the
Perumbar Ins. (I-a) indicates that, before doing so, he
reinstalled the king of Kadaram, after the latter had paid homage
and fealty to the Cola emperor*.

Once back in his country, Kulottunga was faced with a
grave political crisis, as rioted above. Evidently the king of
Kadaram took advantage of this to free himself from the yoke
of the Colas. Possibly he came out successful in some
engagements with the Colas, and pretended to have established

1. Ibid., pp. 130-31. Prof, N. Sastri characterises this view as
'wide of the mark' (op. cit, p. 348 f.n.), but such possibilities should not
be altogether discounted at the present state of our knowledge.

2. In addition to what is contained in foot-note 2 on p. 1 88 about
the grandson of Raja Suran (Cola), the stories of the Cola conquest of
Malaya occur in other legends (cf. J, Mai. Br. R.A.S., 1926, p. 413 ;

pp. I ff.).

188 SAILENDRAS AND THE COLAS

his suzerainty over the latter. 1 The Chinese who got their
information from San-fo-tsi were thus misled into the belief
that Cola was a vassal of Sri-Vijaya (Il-a). For, it is
difficult to believe, in the absence of any positive evidence,
that the king of Kadaram could have established any sort of
political supremacy over the Colas.

The successive embassies in 1078, 1082, 1083, and 1094
(II, e-h) indicate that after the storm of the Cola invasion
had blown over, Kadaram resumed its normal relationship with
the Chinese court.

The political supremacy of the Colas in the Far East,
for a period extending over more than half a century, is, perhaps,
echoed in the Malayan tradition about the mythical expedition of
Raja Suran [Cola?] down the Malay Peninsula 3 . It is
further indicated by some records in Sumatra. A Tamil
inscription has been discovered at Lobu Tua near Baros in
Sumatra. It is dated in 1088 A. D., and refers to the
organisation, activities, and mythological beliefs of the Corpora-
tion of Fifteen Hundred 3 . There is no doubt that this was a
Tamil corporation of the type of Bananja. Nanadesi, Valangai,

1. It is also possible that the king of Kadaram took possession of
some territories in Sumatra or Malay Peninsula which was being ruled
over by the Colas.

2. A History of Perak by R. O. Winstedt and R. J. Wilkinson,
p. 4. The authors think that the Cola raid is alluded to in the account
of the conquest by a Raja Suran of Gangganegara, whose fort still exists
inland at the Dindings, a little above Perak. A grandson of Suran
is also said to have founded Singapore. The story is given in full in
Sejarah Malayu which refers to Deman Lebar Daun, the King of
Palembang, as a descendant of Raja Sulan (J. A. ii-XI, p. 483). Tales
of friendly correspondence between Malayan and Indian kings may also
be attributed to the relations of the Colas with Malayasia. This point
was first noted by Biagden (J. Str. Br. R. A. S., No. 81, p. 26).

3. O. V. 1914, p. 113. Not. Bat. Gen., 1892, p. 80. The
Inscription has been translated into English by Prof. K. A. N. Sastri in
T.B. G., Vol. 72 (1932) PP- 3M ff.

SUVARNADVlPA 189

Idangai etc., whose activities as trade-unions are frequently
referred to in South Indian records 1 . According to an
inscription found at Baligami in the Mysore state, the members
of these unions were "brave men, born to wander over many
countries ever since the beginning of the Kpta age, penetrating
regions of the six continents by land and water-routes, and
dealing in various articles such as horses and elephants,
precious stones, perfumes and drugs, either wholesale or
in retail 2 ." It may be noted here that a Vaisnava Temple
was built at Pagan by the NanadeSis (merchants dealing with
various countries). 3

Another inscription at Porlak Dolok, in Padang Lawas,
and dated probably in A. D. 1245, is partly written in Kavi
script, and partly in Indian, probably South Indian, alphabet*.
A third inscription, at Bandar Bapahat, belonging to the
Majapahit period, is written in Kavi, and then reproduced in
South Indian Grantha character. 5

In addition to these records, the intimate intercourse
between South India and Sumatra is further indicated, partly
by common ceremonials, and partly by the identity of some
Batak clan-names, such as Coliya, Pandiya, Mcliyala, Pelawi, etc.
with the Cola, Pandya, Malayalam, and Pallava. Another
name Tekang is probably derived from Tekkanam, the general
Tamil term for south i.e. South India 8 .

It is, of course, impossible to say when these South Indian
names were introduced into Sumatra. In view of the political
and trade relations between the two countries in the eleventh

1. Cf. R. C. Majumdar Corporate Life in Ancient India,
2nd edition, pp. 87-96.

2. Ep. Cam., Vol. VII, p. 118.

3. Ep. Ind., Vol. VII, p. 107.

4. O. V. 1914, p. 112 ; 1920, p. 70.

5. O. V., 1912, p. 46. Cf. Bk. IV, Chap. I.

6. T. B. G., Vol. 45. (1902), pp. 541-576. Kern, V. G., Vol. Ill,
pp. 67-72, B. K. I., Vol. 74, pp, 263 ff,

190 &AILENDRAS AND THE COLAS

century A.D., the large influx of South Indian people, and
the consequent introduction of these tribal names, may be
referred to that period. Of course, with the evidence available
at present, it is difficult to determine whether the more
peaceful trade relations preceded or succeeded the political
relations between the two countries. In the modern age we
can easily quote examples of either. In many cases, the
commercial intercourse has led to political interference, and
in many others, political supremacy over a foreign land has
led to an intense development of trade of the conquering
country. Whether the traders and merchants of South India
paved the way for the oversea conquest of the Cola kings,
or whether the process was just the reverse, the future
historian alone will be able to say.

Chapter HI.

DECLINE AND FALL OF THE
SAILENDRA EMPIRE

The long-drawn struggle with the Colas, which continued
throughout the eleventh century A. D., and at one time
threatened utter destruction to the Sailendras, ended in a
draw.

After fruitless efforts of a century, the Colas finally
abandoned the impossible enterprise of maintaining their
suzerainty over Sumatra and Malay Peninsula. The Sailendra
kingdom, exhausted and humiliated as it was, slowly recovered
its former position.

But, although we can definitely trace the existence of the
kingdom for nearly three centuries more, when it was finally
destroyed, the Sailendra dynasty passes from our view. After
the beginning of the twelfth century A. D., we hear no more
of that powerful ruling family that dominated Malayasia
since the end of the eighth century A. D. This does not, of
course, mean that they vanished, or even ceased to reign, but
only that we do not possess any definite information of them.
For all we know, they might still continue to rule over the
kingdom.

The continuity of the kingdom is, however, clearly attested
by the Chinese, and, perhaps also, by the Arab accounts, which
still refer to the prowess of San-f o-tsi and Zabag.

The Chinese annals refer to two embassies from San-fo-tsi
in the twelfth century A. D.

In the year 1156 king Si-li-ma-ha-la-sha ( Sri Maharaja )
sent envoys to bring tribute. The emperor said : "When
distant people feel themselves attracted by our civilising
influence, their discernment must be praised. It is therefore

192 FALL OF SAILENDRA EMPIRE

that I rejoice in it, but not because I want to benefit by the
products of their country. 1 "

"In the year 1178 they sent again envoys to bring as tribute
products of the country. On this occasion the emperor issued
an edict ordering that they should not come to court any more,
but make an establishment at Ch'iian-chou in the province
of Fukien."'

According to Ma-Twan-Lin, the ambassadors of 1178
reported that their king had succeeded his father in A. D. 1169.
So the emperor invested the new king with all the titles and
privileges of his ancestors and made suitable presents. 8

The Arab writers Edrisl ( 1154 A. D. ), Kazwlni ( A. D.
1203-1283 ), Ibn Said ( 1208 or 1214 to 1274 or 1286 A. D. ),
and Dimaskl ( c. 1325 A. D. ) all refer to the glory and power
of Zabag.* But it is difficult to say whether they write from
their own personal knowledge, or merely quote from old writers,
as many others expressly have done. But in any case
the Chinese accounts definitely prove the existence of the
kingdom.

Fortunately we possess an interesting account of the extent
of this kingdom in the twelfth century A. D. from the Chinese
work Chu-fan-chi ( "Records of foreign nations"). The
author of this work is Chau Ju-kua, Inspector of Foreign
Trade in Fukien. 5

1. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 67. Both Groeneveldt and Ferrand
(J.A., n-XX, p. 22) restore the name as Maharaja. As the Arabs refer
to the Sailendra kings as Maharaja, we may presume that the king
belonged to that dynasty. But, then, we must remember, that the term
'Maharaja 1 , being the ordinary Indian term for a ruler, might have
been confused with the personal name of a ruler, specially as the personal
name was usually preceded by the appellation 'Maharaja'.

2. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 67. 3. J. A. n-XX, p. 22, f. n. 2.

4. Ibid pp. 65-74-

5. Chau Ju-kua His work on the Chinese and Arab trade in the
twelfth and thirteenth centuries, entitled Chu-fan-chi. Translated by
F. Hirth and W. W. Rockhill, St. Petersburg, (1911).

SUVARNADVIPA 193

As to the date of this Chinese author, Hirth and Rockhill
conclude from a remark the author makes in the chapter on
Baghdad, that the work was composed between 1242 and
1258 A. D. 1 Pelliot has, however, shown that the author
wrote the preface to his work in 1225 A. D. a We must,
therefore, hold that the work was originally written in or
about 1225 A. D., although additions and alterations might
possibly have been made during the next twenty-five years.

M. Coed&s holds the view that Chau Ju-kua's account of
San-fo-tsi is almost entirely based on an earlier work Ling-wai-
tai-ta, written in 1178 A. D., and as such the picture which he
draws can only be regarded as true of the period anterior to
1178 A. D. 3 There does not appear to be any valid reason for
this assumption. Hirth and Rockhill are definitely of opinion
that Chau Ju-kua's account of San-fo-tsi is "based exclusively
on oral information furnished the author by Chinese and
foreign traders."*

As we shall see later, some details given by Chau Ju-kua
(e. </., the inclusion of Ceylon as a dependency of San-fo-tsi) can
only be explained if we assume the date proposed above.

In any case we can take Chau Ju-kua's account as a correct
picture of the state of things in the twelfth century A, D.
According to this Chinese author, San-fo-tsi was master of the
Straits of Malacca and thus controlled the maritime trade
between China and the western countries. San-fo-tsi itself was
a great centre of trade, and fifteen states were dependent upon
it. R These were :

1. Pong-fong (=Pahang).

2. Tong-ya-nong (=Trengganau).

i. Ibid , p. 137. 2. T'oung Pao, Ser, II, Vol. XIII, p. 449.

3. B. K. I, 1927, p. 469. 4. Op. cit., p. 37.

5. Op. cit, pp. 60 if. The identifications of names given within

brackets are on the authority of Ferrand (op. cit. pp. 13-14), and Krom

(Geschiedenis, pp. 303-4). On Nos, 3, 6 and 9, see discussions above, pp.

78-79. According to S. Lcvi, Nos. 7 and 8 must be looked for in the

25

194 PALL OF SAILENDRA EMPIRE

3. Ling-ya-ssi-kia (=Lengkasuka).

4. Ki-lan-tan ( = Kelantan).

5. Fo-lo-an (=Beranang on the Langat river, west

coast of Malay Peninsula). (8. Selangor ? )

6. Ji-lo-t'ing (=Jeloting on the east (?) coast of Malay

Peninsula).

7. Ts'ien-mai. ( In Semang ? )

8. Pa-fa. (Batak?)

9. Tan-ma-ling (=Tamralinga or Ligor in Malay

Peninsula).

10. Kia-lo-hi (=Grahi=Jaya or Caiya, south of the

Bay of Bandon).

11. Pa-lin-fong (Palcmbang).

12. Sin-t'o (=Sunda).

13. Kien-pi (=Kampe or Kampar).

14. Lan-wu-li (=Lamuri=Atjeh.)

15. Si-Ian (= Ceylon).

In addition to the general list of countries subject to
San-fo-tsi, as given above, Chau Ju-kua has given separate
accounts of Ling-ya-ssi-kia, Tan-ma-ling, Fo-lo-an, Sin-to,
Kien-pi, Lan-wu-li, and Si-Ian. 1 Among these, the first two
and the last had their own kings, but they sent tributes to
San-fo-tsi. No king is mentioned in connection with Fo-lo-an,
but the author remarks : "It sends yearly tribute to San-fo-tsi.
Its neighbours Pong-fong, T6ng-ya-nong and Ki-lan-tan are
like it." According to Ling-wai-tai-ta, the chief of Fo-lo-an was
appointed from San-fo-tsi. 9 This may be true of all the four
states. As regards Sin-to Chau Ju-kua says : 'As, however,
there is no regular government in this country, the people are
given to brigandage, on which account foreign traders rarely go

Malay Peninsula (Etudes Asiatiques, Vol. II, pp. 108-9), but Schlegel
(T'oung Pao, Ser. II. Vol. II, p. 135 ) and Gerini (Researches, p. 627),
place them in Sumatra. The identification of No. 5 is on the authority
of Gerini (Researches, p. 825).

I. Chau Ju-kua, pp. 67-73- 2 - Ibid " P- 6 9' f - n - f

SUVARNADVlPA 195

there/ About Kien-pi we are told : "Formerly it was a depen-
dency of San-f o-tsi, but, after a fight, it set up a king of its
own." Nothing is said about the political status of Lan-wu-li in
the brief note which Chau Ju-kua gives more as an introduction
to his account of Si-Ian, than as an independent account of that
kingdom. It would thus appear that Kicn-pi had recently
shaken off the yoke of Saii-f o-tsi, but the other fourteen states
were tributary to that power. In spite of a few uncertainties,
the identification of these vassal states, as given above, would
indicate that the empire of San-f o-tsi included territories in
Sumatra, Java, and Malay Peninsula.

M. Ccedfcs has attempted to show that although the empire
is called by the old name of San-fo-tsi, the seat of the empire
was now transferred from San-fo-tsi to Malayu or Jambi. 1
His principal argument is that Chau Ju-kua included Palembang
among the dependencies of San-fo-tsi, and as San-fo-tsi is
identical with Palembang, the seat of the empire must be
at a place different from Palembang or San-fo-tsi. He
rightly points out, that while describing the empire of Java
or Cambodgc, Chau Ju-kua never includes these names in
the list of their vassal states. But Coedfcs' argument, as we
have indicated above, only discounts the view that San-fo-tsi
is identical with Palembang. The absence of Malayu from
the list of vassal states merely indicates that Malayu was
no longer dependent on San-fo-tsi. But neither the inclusion
of Palembang, nor the exclusion of Malayu, gives us any right
to maintain, in the face of the express statement of Chau
Ju-kua about San-fo-tsi, that that kingdom had yielded its place
of preeminence to Malayu.

M. Coedfcs seeks to support his view by reference to the
Caiya inscription, dated 1183 A. D., which refers to Maharaja
Srlmat-Trailokyaraja-mauli-bhQsana-varma-deva and his
governor of Grahi, Mahasen&pati Galanai. Coedfcs argues that
if in 1183 A. D. the name of a king of Malayu appears in a

1. B. K. I., 1927, pp. 469 ff.

196 FALL OF SAILENDRA EMPIRE

record of Caiya, it simply means that "Malayu had substituted
its own authority in place of Srl-Vijaya (sic) over the petty
states of the Malay Peninsula." 1

But it is a mere gratuitous assumption that Trailokya-
raja-mauli-bhnsana-varma-deva is a king of Malayu. Coedfcs
evidently relies on the fact that an inscription, found at Padang
Rocho in Batanghari district in Jambi, refers to a king named
Maharaja Srimat-Tribhuvanaraja-mauli-varrna-deva, as ruling
in 1286 A.D. 8 In spite of the resemblance in the names of
the two kings, who lived a century apart, it would obviously
be absurd to regard the royal name as a monopoly of Malayu,
and, in the absence of any other evidence, to take the earlier
king also as a ruler of Malayu, although his records have
been found in Malay Peninsula alone. We must remember
that the Sailendra emperors also bore names like Cudamarii-
varmadeva.

Further, Edrisl (1154 A.D.) clearly says that the king of
Kalah, Zfibag, and the neighbouring islands lived in the city of
Kalah which is clearly the Katalm of the Cola records. 3

There is thus no reason to disregard the evidence of Arab
and Chinese writers that the old kingdom of Znbag or Smi-fo-tsi
continued in its old glory and splendour till the beginning of
the thirteenth century. The Caiya inscription has perhaps
furnished us with the name of the only individual emperor of

1. Ibid,, p. 469, The Caiya inscription was originally edited by
M. Coedds (B.E.F.E.O,, XVIII, No. 6, pp, 34-5), but the date was wrongly
read.

2. J. A., n-XX, p. 179. Ccedes says with reference to
TrailokyarajaHTiauli-bhusana-varma-deva that "his title is identical to
that of the kings of Malayu known by the inscriptions dating from
1286 to 1378 A.D." (B, K. 1.1927, p 468). Evidently he refers to
the titles of Adityavarman ( see Bk. IV, Chap. I ), who lived nearly
hundred years later than Tribhuvanaraja-mauli-varma-deva, but no
intermediate king is known to have borne such titles.

3. Cf. my article in B.E.F.E.O,, Vol. XXXIII, p. 131., and the
appendix to Bk. II.

SUVARNADVlPA 197

San-fo-tsi of the 12th century A. D. known to us. For, as
Grahi has been identified with Chau Ju-kua's Kia-lo-hi, it
was a dependent state of San-fo-tsi towards the end of the 12th
and the beginning of the 13th century A. D. The ruler, whose
dominions included Grahi as a Governor's province in 1183 A.D.,
may not, therefore, unreasonably be regarded as the king
of San-fo-tsi. It would thus be more proper to regard the
Maharaja Srimat-Trailokyaraja-mauli-bhusana-varma-dcva as
a remote successor of Cadamani-varma-deva, though it is
difficult to say whether he belonged to the same family,

Chau Ju-kua's account of the great power of San-fo-tsi
is corroborated by an independent evidence. About the time
when he wrote his book, we come across the name of a king
Candrabhanu in an inscription at Caiya, dated 1230 A.D. 1
Ccedfcs has established beyond all doubt that this king Can-
drabhiinu is referred to in the Ceylonese Chronicles as having
led two expeditions against Ceylon.

The detailed account as given in Cullavamsa may be
summarised as follows 2 :

"In the eleventh year of the reign of king Parakramabahu
II, a king of Javaka, called Candrabhanu, landed with an army
at Kakkhala, on the pretext that they were Buddhists and
therefore came on a peaceful mission. The soldiers of Javaka,
who used poisoned arrows, treacherously occupied the passages
across the rivers, and having defeated all those who opposed
them, devastated the whole of Ceylon. But the regent Virabahu
defeated them in several battles and forced them to withdraw
from the land. A few years later, king Candrabhanu again
landed at Mahatlrtha, and his army was, on this occasion,

1. Edited by M. Ccedes (B.E.F.E.O., XVIII, No. 6. p. 32).

2. Cullavamsa, i. e., the later continuation of Mahavamsa Ed.
Geiger, Chap. 83, vv. 36-48* ; Chap. 88, vv. 62-75. The king of Javaka
mentioned in the passage was taken by Kern to refer to a Javanese king
(V.G. Ill, pp. 27 ff.)> bu * ne is n w usually taken as a king of rI-Vijaya.
For a more detailed discussion of the proposed identification, cf,
B.E.F.E.O., XXXIII, pp. 133. ff, and the Appendix,

198 FALL OF SAILENDRA EMPIRE

reinforced by a large number of Pandya, Cola, and other Tamil
soldiers. After some initial successes the Javaka army was
surrounded and completely defeated by the Ceylonese troops
under Vijayabahu and Virabahu. King Candrabhanu some-
how fled with his life, leaving behind his family and treasures
in the hands of the victorious enemy."

The date of these events has been variously interpreted.
But Ccedfcs has established on good authority that the two
invasions of Candrabhanu took place in A.D. 1236 and 1256 \

Now the inclusion of Ceylon among the vassal states of
San-fo-tsi has been justly regarded as the most surprising of
all ; for, although Masudf, in his 'Meadow of Gold' (10th century
A.D.), refers to the Maharaja of Zabag as king of Sirandib or
Ceylon 9 , there is no historical evidence to show that Ceylon
was a vassal state of the Sailendras.

But even in this respect, perhaps, on the face of it, the
least credible of all, Chan Ju-kua's account is corroborated
to a certain extent by the passage of Cullavamsa quoted above.
For the Ceylonese author admits in a way the triumph of the
Javaka army sometime in 1236 A. D., before Chau Ju-kua
concluded his work.

It is obvious that Candrabhanu's invasion of Ceylon was
an act of extreme imprudence, and had the most regrettable
consequences. The two expeditions to the distant island must
have taxed the strength of the Javaka kingdom to the utmost,
and the disastrous end of the second expedition weakened its
prestige and authority beyond recovery.

In an inscription, dated 1264 A. D 3 ., Jatavarman Vira-
Pandya claims to have defeated and killed the Savaka king,

1. B.K.I., 1927, pp. 463 ff. Ccedes has shown that the date usually
assigned to the Ceylonese king Parakramabahu II (A.D. 1240-1275)
should be pushed back by 1 5 years, He would thus have ruled from
1225 to 1260 A.D. Ccedes further points out that the account of Culla-
varfisa is corroborated by the Pali work Jinakalamalini.

2. Ferrand Textes, p. 93-

3 . S. I. Ep. Rep., 1917, Ins. No. 588. pp. 50, in,

SUVARNADVlPA 199

and in another inscription, dated the next year 1 , he includes
the king of Kadaram among the host of rulers conquered by
him. Savaka is no doubt the same as Javaka, and we can
easily take the defeat of the kings of Savaka and Kadaram to
refer to the defeat of one and the same king, as in the case of
Rajendra Cola. 2 Thus the ill-advised expedition to Ceylon
by the king of Kadaram was followed at no distant date by his
humiliating defeat and death at the hands of the Pandya king.

The fact that the Pandya king boasts also of having con-
quered Ceylon, seems to connect the Ceyloneso expedition
of Candrabhanu with his defeat and death at the hands of
Jatavarman. It may be recalled that during his second ex-
pedition against that island, Candrabhanu was helped by troops
from Cola and Pandya countries. Perhaps he made an alliance
with these two powers and organised a joint expedition against
Ceylon. But as in many other similar allied expeditions, it was
dissolved on the failure of the project, and then Vira Pandya
presumably took advantage of the helpless situation of
Candrabhanu and turned against him. It is also quite likely
that he betrayed first his two allies and then the king of Ceylon,
who was temporarily saved by his first betrayal. This would
explain the statement in the inscription of 1264 A.D, that Vira
Pandya "was pleased to take the Cola country, Ceylon, and the
crown and the crowned head of Savaka." In other words, he
turned against both his allies and defeated them, and ended by
conquering Ceylon, which was their common objective. This
view seems more reasonable than that a regular naval expedition
was sent by the Pandya king against Kadaram or Savaka.

Candrabhanu who thus met with a tragic end was the last
great ruler of the mighty kingdom founded by the Sailendras.
The fact that he is styled the Savaka king, and, perhaps also, king
of Kadaram, and felt powerful enough to send two military
expeditions to Ceylon, discounts the view of Coedfcs, referred to

1. Ibid., 1912, No. 39, p. 72.

2. For detailed discussion cf. B.K.I., 1927, p. 4$7

200 FALL OF SAILENDRA EMPIRE

above, that Malayu had established its supremacy over the petty
states of Malay Peninsula, which once acknowledged the
suzerainty of San-fo-tsi or Zabag. On the whole, the available
evidence would justify us in regarding the last-named kingdom
as continuing in power and glory till the middle of the
thirteenth century A.D.

In the Caiya inscription, Candrabhanu is said to have been
born in the family of lotus. He is also called Lord of
Tambralinga. It is almost certain, therefore, that he did not
belong to the family of the Sailendras. Chau Ju-kua describes
Tambralinga as a vassal state of San-fo-tsi having a separate
ruler. It would thus appear that Candrabhanu had usurped
the authority of his overlord by a successful rebellion. We
have scon above that Kien-pi, another vassal state in Sumatra,
had also successfully rebelled against San-fo-tsi about the same
time. Thus the disruption of the empire of San-fo-tsi, both in
Sumatra as well as in Malay Peninsula, set in at the beginning
of the thirteenth century A.D.

The catastrophic end of Candrabhanu completed the
disruption and gave a unique opportunity to the Javanese king
Kptanagara to extend his authority over the dominions of the
Sailendras. He conquered Pahang in Malay Peninsula which
was a vassal state of San-fo-tsi. He also sent an expedition
against Malayu (Jambi) in 1275 A.D., and converted it into a
separate state under his own authority. The Padang Rocho
inscription of 1286 A.D., referred to above, clearly shows that
the new kingdom extended far into the interior, and its king
Srlmat-Tribhuvanaraja-mauli-varma-deva regarded himself as a
vassal of Maharajadhiraja Krtanagara. Thus Java planted
important outposts in the very heart of the empire of San-fo-tsi,
from which it could gradually extend its power and authority
in all directions.

For the time being, however, these calculations were upset
by the tragic end of Kj-tanagara and the fall of his kingdom.
The Javanese army of occupation was withdrawn from Malayu,

SUVARNADVIPA 201

and therewith the Javanese authority vanished from the land.
But San-fo-tsi, which was not strong enough to resist the
Javanese encroachments, was yet too weak to take advantage
of this opportunity to re-assert its authority over Malayu.
Malayu remained an independent kingdom and soon became a
powerful rival of San-fo-tsi.

The fact is that San-fo-tsi had not only to reckon with the
growing menace from the side of Java, but also to contend with
another great military power, the Thai, who had conquered Siam
and were extending their power towards Malay Peninsula. The
rise of the Thais of Sukhodaya was an epoch-making event in
the history of Indo-China. Towards the close of the thirteenth
century A.D. they had conquered the northern part of the
Malay Peninsula. We know from the inscription of king Rama
Gomhcng of Sukhodaya, dated 1292 A.D., that Srl-Dharma-
raja of Ligor, one of the vassal states of San-fo-tsi, had
already been conquered by the king of Siam 1 . Thus
hemmed in between the rising power of the Thais in the north
and the growing kingdom of Malayu in the south, the
discomfiture of San-fo-tsi was complete. She lost her position
of supremacy and sank into a local power. Henceforth her
possessions in the Malay Peninsula formed a bone of contention
between Malayu and Siam.

San-fo-tsi continued this inglorious existence for nearly
a century. Wang Ta-yucn (1349 A. D.) refers to its king as
a local ruler, and says nothing of the great power and splendour
of the Maharaja 8 . The Nagarakrtagama (13G5 A. D.) includes
Paleinbang among the list of vassal states of Java, and
the Chinese accounts refer to the conquest of San-fo-tsi
by Java sometime before 1377 A. D. According to the History
of the Ming Dynasty 3 , the Chinese emperor sent an envoy

1. Ccectes Inscriptions de Sukhodaya (1924), pp. 37-48.

2. T'oung Pao, 1915, pp. 61-69.

3. Groeneveldt Notes, pp. 68 ff ; Ferrand, J.A., n-XX (1922)
pp. 24 ff.

26

202 PALL OF SAILENDRA EMPIRE

in 1370 A. D. "to command the presence of this country, and
in the next year (1371 A. D.) the king, who was called
Maharaja Prabu, sent envoys with tribute and a letter written
on a golden leaf.

By the year 1373 A. D., San-fo-tsi was divided into three
states, and their rulers, named Tan-ma-sa-na-ho, Ma-na-
ha-pau-lin-pang 1 , and Seng-ka-liet-yu-lan* sent envoys with
tribute to the imperial court respectively in 1373, 1374, and
1375 A.D.

In the year 1376 A. D. king Tan-ma-sa-na-ho died and
his son Ma-la-cha Wu-li succeeded him. In 1377 AJD. he
sent tribute to the emperor and asked permission of the
imperial court to ascend the throne. "The Emperor ordered
envoys to bring him a seal and a commission as king of
San-fo-tsi." The interference of China in the affairs of a
vassal state caused the just resentment of the Javanese who
had conquered San-fo-tsi. They waylaid and killed the imperial
envoys.

Thus there can be no doubt that Java now exercised an
effective authority over the kingdom of San-fo-tsi, which
was hopelessly divided and sank gradually into insignificance.
The Chinese historian pathetically remarks : "After this
occurrence San-fo-tsi became gradually poorer and no tribute
was brought from this country any more."

During the next twenty-five years the destruction of
San-fo-tsi was completed. Its condition in 1397 A. D. is
thus described in the History of the Ming Dynasty :

"At that time Java had completely conquered San-fo-tsi
and changed its name to Ku-Kang 8 . When San-fo-tsi

1. Ferrand (op. cit) restores this name as Maharaja Palembang.

2. Ferrand suggests that this king is identical with the
minister sent by Java to the Imperial Court in 1325 and 1332 A. D.
(op. cit., p. 25, f. n. 2).

3. Ku-Kang is the Chinese name for Palembang up to the present
day (Groeneveldt Notes, p. 7* f.n.i.), but it cannot be taken as

SUVARNADVlPA 203

went down, the whole country was disturbed and the Javanese
could not keep all the land. For this reason, the local Chinese
residents stood up for themselves and elected as their chief
a man from Nan-hai in Canton, called Liang Tau-ming,
who had lived there a long time and roamed over the sea,
and who had the support of several thousand men from Pu-kien
and Canton/'

In other words, a Chinese pirate set himself up as a king
in a part at least of what was once the flourishing kingdom
of the Sailendras. This was no doubt due to the weakness of
Java. Java was able to destroy the old kingdom, but could not
build up a new one in its place. Krom even goes so far as
to suggest, that the destruction of San-fo-tsi was a deliberate act
on the part of Java. In order to wipe off from the face of the
earth a power that had been in the past, and might be in future,
a great rival in political and economic spheres, she intentionally
and systematically laid waste the country, which afterwards
became a stronghold of Chinese adventurers.

From the beginning of the fifteenth century A. D. San-fo-tsi
passes from our view. One or more Chinese adventurers
established authority in that land from time to time, but
their history and intercourse with the imperial court,
described in detail in the History of the Ming Dynasty, is
outside the scope of this work.

In conclusion we may refer to Kadiiram. If we are right
in identifying it with Kcddah, we may refer to Keddah
Annals (Hikayat Marong Mahavamsa) for the seven Hindu
rulers of the State before the last one adopted Islam in
1474 A. D. 1

equivalent to San-fo-tsi. It must have denoted only a part of that
kingdom. I have discussed this point in an article in B.E.F.E.O.,
Vol. XXIII, p. 135, and also in the Appendix.

i. R. O. Winstedt History of Kedah ( J. Str. Br, R. A. S., No. 81,
p. 29.)-

APPENDIX 1

1.

The present views about the greatness of the Sailendras
have been gradually developed during the last twenty years.

It was Dr. Coedfcs who first set the ball rolling. In an
article, which has now become almost classic, he sought to
prove that Srl-Vijaya is the original form of the name which
has been rendered variously as Fo-Che, Che-li-fo-chc, Fo-tsi
and San-fo-tsi by the Chinese, and Sribuza by the Arabs. As
these places could be positively located at Palembang, Sri-
Vijaya also must be identified with that place.*

M. Cocd&s then naturally inferred from the Ligor Inscrip-
tion that the authority of Srl-Vijaya had extended to the
northern part of Malay Peninsula by the end of the eighth
century A. D. He further assumed that the king of the
Sailendra dynasty, referred to in face B of the Ligor Ins., was
the same as king of Srl-Vijaya referred to in face A of that
inscription. 3

1. This Appendix forms the part of an article published in
B.E.F.E.O., Vol. xxxiii, pp. 121-141. On the publication of this and
another article ( corresponding to Chapter I, Bk. II ) M. Coedes contri-
buted an article ''On the origin of the Sailendras' in J. G. I. S., Vol. 1,
pp.6iff. Here he modified some of his old views which will be noted
in footnotes.

2. B.E.F.E.O., Vol. xviii, No. 6.

3. M. Coedes States : "Although I had not formulated this
hypothesis in a sufficiently precise manner in 1918 (i.e. in article
referred to in the preceding footnote) I willingly recognise my part of the
responsibility for the identification of the ailendras with the kings of
ri-Vijaya" (op, cit,, p. 64),

SUVARNADVlPA 205

A Sailendra empire, with Palembang as capital, 1 and inclu-
ding Sumatra and Malay Peninsula, was thus the logical
conclusion of M. Coedfcs* studies. He also regarded as probable
the views of Chavannes and Gerini, that this empire was
identical with the one described by the Arabs as Zflbag.
Ferrand* went a step further, and declared this identity to be
beyond all doubt, by equating Zabag with San-fo-tsi. The
Sailendra dynasty of Palembang thus came to be regarded as
the ruler of a mighty empire in the Pacific, of which glowing
descriptions have been preserved by so many Arab writers.

Further light on the greatness of the Sailendras was thrown
by Krom 3 and Vogel.* These two scholars, writing indepen-
dently filmost at the same time, brought out the important part
which the Sailendras must have played in Java. The Kalasan
and Kelurak inscriptions clearly indicated Sailendra supremacy
in Java in 778 and 782 A. D. Starting from this basis, Krom
pointed out the great influences which the Buddhist Sailendras
must have exerted on the art and religion of Java. In short,
he held the view that these Sailendras imported the Mahayana
form of Buddhism into Java and were instrumental in building

1. M. Coedes has made the following observation in his recent
article ( op. cit., p. 63, f.n. 4 ).

"Everybody ( including myself ) has had difficulty in losing sight
of a note in my first article on ri-Vijaya ( B.E.F.E.O., XVIII, 6, p. 3,
note 5 ) where I cautiously said, "This expression, 'The kingdom of
Palembang' which will frequently occur in course of the present article,
is a convenient designation : in employing it, however, I do not wish to
affirm that the capital of this State was always at Palembang. 1 '

2. G. Ferrand L'Empire Sumatranais de rivijaya/ J. A. t u-
XX, pp. 1-104, 161-244 ; cf. specially pp. 163. ff.

3. Krom De Soematraansche periode in de Javaansche Geschie-
denis, Leiden, 1919. A French summary of this article appeared in
B.E.F.E.O., Vol. XIX, No. 5, p, 127.

4. J. P. Vogel 'Het Koninkrijk Sri-vijaya' B. K. I,, 1919, pp.
6556 ff,

206 APPENDIX

such famous structures as Barabudur, Candi Mendut and
Candi Kalasan. Thus originated the hypothesis of a Sumatran
period in Javanese history, with far-reaching consequences in
the political and cultural history of Java.

The table was, however, completely turned by Stutterheim, 1
who amazed the world of scholars by his bold hypothesis, that
the Sailendra dynasty belonged to Java, and, later, conquered
Sri-Vijaya. Thus, instead of a Sumatran period in Javanese
history, we should, in his opinion, think of a Javanese period
in Sumatran history.

2.

Iii view of this radical difference among the scholars, we
propose to review the whole question again from the very
beginning, in the clear light of positive data, without any theory
or prejudice to obscure our view.

In the first place, let us examine Dr. Coedfes* view that the
Sailendras were originally kings of Sri-Vijaya (Palembang).
The evidence on which he relies is the Ligor Inscription. In
face A, it refers to Sri-Vijayendraraja, Sri-VijayeSvarabhOpati,
and Sri-Vijayanrpati. Dr. Coedfcs takes them all to mean
'king of Sri-Vijaya/ but Stutterheim proposes the translation
"king over the lords of Sri-Vijaya" for the first two expressions.
The third expression, of course, can mean only 'king of Sri-
Vijaya/ Stutterheim, in defending his hypothesis about 'over-
lord/ remarks : "In mentioning his person for the third time,
this intentional indication was no longer added, and replaced
by the short indication of 'king of Sri-Vijaya', which, in
fact, he was for the people of that country."- Now, without
ignoring the force of this argument, it must be conceded that
the probability lies in favour of Dr. Coedfcs' view. 3 Although,

i. W. F. Stutterheim A Javanese period in Sumatran History,
Surakarta, 1929. 2. Ibid., p. 14.

3. The correctness of Coedes view was also shown by Mus in

P.E.F.E.O., vol. xxvm, p. 520.

SUVARNADVfPA 207

therefore, we may not regard it as certain, we may hold for
the time being that the king of Sri-Vijaya was intended by
those expressions.

But when this king of Sri-Vijaya is identified with the king
of SailendravamSa mentioned in the inscription on face B, we
must express a serious doubt. The word 'Svasti* at the
beginning of the second inscription shows that it was an entirely
new record, and not a part of the first. A comparison of the
alphabets of the two records certainly indicates that they were
contemporary or nearly so, but were not incised by the same
hand, at one and the same time. Then, in the long eulogy of the
king of Sri-Vijaya in the first inscription, he is nowhere
referred to as belonging to the Sailendra dynasty. On the other
hand, Sri-Vijaya is not mentioned in the second inscription,
which not only refers to a Eajadhiraja and Frabhu (Lord) of
the Sailendra dynasty, but gives us two of his appellations,
Visnu and Maharaja. It is thus legitimate to hold that the two
inscriptions must be regarded as emanating from different
persons until we find proof to the contrary 1 , the face B being
obviously later in point of time. Thus the only reasonable
conclusions that we can draw from the Ligor inscriptions arc
that the locality was included in the kingdom of Sri-Vijaya in
775 A. D., and that it acknowledged the suzerainty of a king
of the Sailendra dynasty at a subsequent period. There is
nothing to prove that the king of Sri-Vijaya belonged to the
Sailendra dynasty.

It has been argued by Dr. Coedes that kings Cudamani-
varman and Mara-vijayottungavarman, belonging to the
Sailendra dynasty, arc referred to in Cola records as rulers of
Sri-Vijaya, and that, therefore, the Sailendra king of Face B
of Ligor Ins. may also be regarded as king of Sri-Vijaya.

On examining the Cola records it appears that the two kings
were regarded rather as kings of Kadara (or Ka$aha=Kedda
in Malay Peninsula), also ruling over Sri-Vijaya, than kings of

i. This is now admitted by Coedes ( op. cit, pp. 64-65).

208 APPENDIX

Sri-Vijaya. In all records, save one, they are referred to simply
as rulers of Kataha, Kadara or Kidara. Even in the one
exceptional case, m., the Larger Leiden Grant, the Tamil
portion refers to Cudamanivarman as king of Kadara, while
the Sanskrit portion refers to Sri-Mara-vijayottungavarman
as lord of Sri-Vijaya, and extending the suzerainty of Kataha
(sec ante, p. 168). This last phrase hardly leaves any doubt that
the Colas regarded them primarily as rulers of Kataha who
had extended their suzerainty over Sri-Vijaya.

While the records of the Sailendra kings have been found
in Java and Malay Peninsula, none has yet been found in
Sumatra, and there is no evidence whatever to locate the centre
of authority of the Sailendra kings in Sri-Vijaya, at least before
the close of the 10th century A. D. It is interesting to note
in this connection, that the Sailendra dynasty is not referred to
in any of the four inscriptions 1 of Sri-Vijaya, belonging to the
close of the seventh century A. D., when that kingdom had
already begun its career of aggrandisement which, according to
Krom and others, ultimately led it to establish its mastery over

Java. /

We have thus definite evidence that the Sailendras were
ruling over Malay Peninsula and Java about the end of the
eighth century A. D. Now the story of the grand empire of
Zabag, consisting of the islands of Indonesia and Malay
Peninsula, first appears in Arab writings in the middle of the
ninth century A. D. 9 . The earliest Arab writer, Ibn
Khordadzbeh (844-848 A. D.), makes the statement that the
king of Zabag is named Maharaja. This immediately recalls
to our mind that in the Ligor Inscription, face B, the Sailendra
emperor is said to be 'Maharajanama', 'whose name is
Maharaja'. This is interesting, but can not be regarded as a
conclusive argument in favour of the view that the empire of

1. These inscriptions have been edited by Coedes ( B.E.F.E.O.,
Vol. XXX, Nos. 1-2). See ante, pp. 122-3.

2. Cf. Bk. II. Ch. I.

SUVARNADVlPA 209

Zabag and the Saileudra empire are one and the same. But, on
general grounds, it is reasonable to hold, that there was only
one such empire, rather than two, in the Pacific in the ninth
and subsequent centuries, as is described by the Arab writers.
As the Sailendras undoubtedly ruled over an extensive empire
in Malayasia during this period, a prima facie case is esta-
blished for the hypothesis that the Sailendra empire is referred
to by the Arabs as the empire of the Maharaja of Zabag. But
before this question can be further discussed we have to
consider the identity of Zabag.

3.

As stated above, it is now generally accepted that the name
Zabag and its variants, used by the Arab writers, denote the
same country which the Chinese designate as Che-li-fo-che,
Fo-Che, or San-fo-tsi, i.e., Sri-Vijaya. The question is,
however, not certainly free from doubts or difficulties. Ferrand,
the latest writer on this subject, has given the following
reasons for the identification 1 .

1. According to Ligor Inscription, the king of Sri-Vijaya
is called Maharaja (S'rl-Mahartija-nama). The Arab writers
all refer to Zabag as the kingdom of Maharaja.

2. Abulfida states, on the authority of previous writers,
that "the island of Maharaja is the island of Sribuza", which
means that the two refer to the same island. Sribuza,
undoubtedly, stands for Sri-Vijaya. The island of Maharaja,
according to Dimaski, is "the mother of the islands belonging
to Maharaja", or, in other words, the capital of the islands
forming the domain of Maharaja. It, therefore, denotes
Zabag. We thus get the following equation.

The island of Maharaja = Zabag = Sri-Vijaya.
Now the first of these arguments loses its force in view
of what has been said before. As to the second, we can easily
accept the view that the "island of Maharaja" is identical

i. Ferrand, op. cit. pp. 163 ff.
27

210 APPENDIX

with Zabag. It is also proved by the fact that various Arab
writers describe some peculiar characteristics of the kingdom
which they refer, sometime to Zabag, and sometime to the
island of Maharaja, Thus, Abu Zayd Hasan says that Zabag
is thickly populated, and there is a continuous line of villages
there, so that when the cocks crow in the morning, the cry
is taken up by those in the next village, and in this way the
sound is taken up for nearly a distance of 100 parsangs.
The same writer tells the story of the lake in front of the
palace, in which the king of Zabag throws a brick of gold
everyday. Now Ibrahim bin Waif Sah relates the first
story about the island of Maharaja, while Ibn Sa'id reproduces
the second in connection with the island of Maharaja.

But although the island of Maharaja is the same as Zabag,
its identification with SrI-Vijaya seems to be impossible.
For Abalfida, on whose statement Ferrand relies, clearly
distinguishes Zabag from Sribuza ( SrI-Vijaya ), and gives
different longitudes for the two. This view is supported by
the testimony of other Arab writers, 1 which Ferrand has
altogether ignored. Ibn Sa'ld, for example, definitely
distinguishes Sribuza from Zabag. The former he places in
3-40' Latitude and 88-30' Longitude, while the Latitude and
Longitude for the latter arc given respectively as 12-30' and
151. This is fully in keeping with his general statement that
to the south-east of Sribuza is a large number of islands which
constitute the archipelago of Zabag.

AbQ Zayd Hasan also clearly distinguishes Zabag from
Sri-Vijaya. After describing the kingdom of the Maharaja,
of which Zabag was the capital, he says : "Among the kingdoms
over which he rules are the islands called Sribuza and Kami/'
Similarly Mas'udi also states that the island of Sribuza is
within the empire of Zabag, thus distinguishing the two.
HarakI enumerates Zabag and Sribuza as separate islands in
the Indian sea. Yakut is still more definite. He not only

i. For the Arab accounts cf. J. A., i i-XX, pp. 52 ff.

SUVAKNADVlPA 211

mentions the two separately in the list of islands, but further
remarks that while Zabag is an island at the border of India
and China, Sribuza is an island in India itself.

It is thus quite clear that as against Abalfida's statement
that the island of Maharaja is the same as Sri-Vijaya, there
are definite statements by a large number of Arab writers
that Zabag and Sri-Vijaya arc two separate islands.

The Arab writers do not enable us to locate Zabag
definitely, but they make certain general statements about its
position. These may be summed up as follows 1

(1) India is bounded on the south by the kingdom of
Zabag (62,54) which is midway between China and the
Balhara kingdom (62). Zabag is at the eastern end of India
beyond the sea of Harkaiid (Bay of Bengal), and to the west
of China (66)

(2) Zabag separates China from India (62), and its capital
is about a month's journey by sea from China (56)

(3) The Khmer country is situated on the same longitude
as Zabag. The distance between the two is ten to twenty days'
journey by sea in the direction north to south, or reverse (59).
The relative position of Khmer and Zabag is like that of
Madura and Ceylon (62).

(4) There is a 'bay of Zabag', and the sea of China forms
numerous creeks on the coast of Zabag (62). The islands of
Zabag form a large archipelago (63).

(5) The equator commences in the sea to the south of
China and passes through the island of Zabag (which contains
gold) between the islands of Kalah and Sribuza (65, 73)

(6) The Latitude and Longitude of Zabag, as given by the
Arab writers, do not always agree, and as their mode of
calculation differs considerably from ours, the utmost that we

i. Numerical figures within brackets in the following passages
refer to pages of Ferrand's article (J. A., u-XX).

212 APPENDIX

can safely deduce from theso data is a comparative view of the
position of different localities.

Thus Ibn Sa'id (70) gives us the following data.

Latitude. Longitude.

Zabag 12-30'. 151.

Sribuza 3-40' 88-30' (Abalfidft (p. 74)

quoting Ibn Sa'id gives this
figure as 108-30'.

Jawa 5 145.( a ) ) (a) According to

Lamuri 5 145.( a ) [ quotation of Abal-

Pancfir(Fancur)l-30' 145.( a ) ) fida (p. 74)

Atwal quoted by Abnlfidfi (p. 74)
Zabag 115

Alberuni quoted by Abalfidft (p. 74)
Sribuza 1 140

The only place in the above list that can be definitely
identified is Larauri or Lanibri in Northern Sumatra which
evidently is referred to as Jawa.

It will appear that the island of Zabag is definitely located
about 6 to the east and about 7-30' to the north of Northern
Sumatra which contains Lambri. The Longitudes given for
Sribuza differ widely, but all of them place it to the west of
Lambri.

All these data would point toward Malay Peninsula which,
like Sumatra, was conceived by the Arab writers as consisting
of a number of islands. The account of Ibn Sa'id seems
to be very definite on this point It says that to the south of
Zabag is the island of Jawa. As the towns of Lamuri and
Fancur are placed in Jawa, it must be identified with the northern
part of Sumatra. Thus the island of Maharaja is to be placed
in Malay Peninsula. This is confirmed by the fact, that the
author places Kalah in the south-east, either of the island of
Maharaja, or of Jawa. In any case as Kalah denotes the
well-known place Keddah, the island of Maharaja must be
placed to its north. The Longitudes for Jawa (the western-
most point), Zsbag, and Kalah are given respectively as 144,

SUVAENADVIPA 213

151, and 154. Jawa is placed between Latitudes 1 and 5
while the island of Maharaja is placed at the latitude of 12-30'.
Further, Ibn Sa'ld places the islands of Maharaja not far from
Andaman in a south-easterly direction. All these would fit in
well with the northern part of Malay Peninsula.

The earliest Arab writer Ibn Khordadzbeh (844-848 A.D.)
refers to the island kingdom of Djaba, and although he some-
times uses the form Djawaga, the following considerations show
that the two places were identical 1 .

(1) He refers to the island of Kilah (i.e. Kalah) as
belonging to the kingdom of Djaba (p. 27), while his contempo-
rary Sulayman (851 A.D.) and other Arab writers refer to
Kalah-bar, the same place as Kilah, as a dependency of
Djawaga.

(2) He refers to the volcano at Djaba (p. 28), which
Sulayman (p. 41) and other Arab writers (p. (50) place close
to Djawaga (p. 41, fax. 7).

(3) He refers to Djaba, Salahit, and Harladj as lying in
close proximity to one another (pp. 27-8), whereas Ibn Rosteh
(903 A.D,) puts Djawaga, Salahat, and Harladj as neighbouring
islands (pp. 78-9).

Now Edrlsl (1154 A.D.) not only refers to Kilah, Djaba,
Salahat, and Haridj (variant of Harladj) 2 as lying in close
proximity, about two parsangs from one another, but he further
states that all these form the territories of one king, who lives
in Kilah, and is called Djaba 8 . In other words, the lord of
all these states took his title from Djaba, but his headquarters
were in Kilah. This statement leaves no doubt that Djaba
and also, therefore, Djawaga, was in Malay Peninsula, and in
the 12th century, the overlord of this and the neighbouring
islands lived in Kalah. This fits in well with the Cola records
which refer to the king as that of Kataha (Kalah).

i. Cf. Ferrand Textes (Figures within bracket refer to pages of
this book).

3. Ibid. f p. 27 f. n. 9. 3, Ibid, ? pp. 184-5.

214 APPENDIX

We arrive at the same conclusion by a general study of
the geographical conception of the Arabs. The early Arab
writers refer to a country called Rahma, and, from the details
given, there remains no doubt that by that term they meant
Pegu, as is indeed admitted by Perrand 1 . Now Ibn al-
Paklh says : "In India there is a kingdom called Rahma which is
situated on the sea-coast. Next to this is the country of Djawaga
whose king is called Maharaja. There is nobody behind him
for he is in the last of the islands V ;

Now if Rahma denotes Pegu, we have evidently to look for
Djawaga in Malay Peninsula, and to an Arab writer, perhaps
ignorant of Borneo, and regarding China, Combodia, and
Malaya Peninsula as a series running from north to south,
the expression 'there is no country behind (i.e. to the east of)
Djawaga' is not very far from the truth. Of course we must
not forget that the name Djawaga is also used by almost all
the Arab writers in the extended sense of Malayasia, and the
statements of Ibn al-Faklh may easily be explained on this
supposition. Some other statements may also be similarly
explained. Thus Ibn al-Fakih refers to the volcano in the
neighbourhood of Zabag 8 , and also describes FancQr as a
province or country included in Zabag 4 . As Sumatra, or
at least a part of it, was undoubtedly included in the wider
designation of Zabag, his statements are not difficult to under-
stand, and do not appear to be inconsistent with the view that
Zabag proper denotes Malay Peninsula. As against Fancdr,
we may note, for instance, that Ka-Kula which Kia-tan places
to the west of Kalah, and which has thus to be located in
Malay Peninsula R , is referred to as a country of Djawaga. 8

The Arab statement that Zabag was the borderland between
India and China supports its location in the Malay Peninsula.
For the port of Kalah is referred to by the Arab writers as the

i. Ibid., pp. 29,36,43 (f.n. 2). 2. Ibid,, p. 64.

3. Ibid., p. 59. 4- Ibid., p. 65.

5. B.E.F.E.O., Vol. IV, p. 353. 6. Ferrand Textes, p, 308.

SUVARNADVlPA 215

first Indian country in the neighbourhood of China, and 300
parsangs from the latter 1 . If we remember that also Rahma
(Pegu) and Khmer 9 are both regarded as parts of India, and
that Djawaga is described as 'separating China from India, or
at the eastern end of India, beyond the sea of Harkand, and to
the west of China 3 ' we should naturally take Djawaga as
denoting the northern part of the Malay Peninsula and the
countries adjoining to the north of it.

The Arab statement that Zabag was the borderland between
India and China might induce us to include within it Laos
and the vaguely defined hilly country on its north which was
actually known as Java or Sava.* In this vague extended
sense, Davaka, used in Samudragupta's inscription, may be
regarded as the origin of the forms Javaka or Arabian Zabag.*

The view that Zabag is to be located in Malay Peninsula is
strikingly confirmed by independent evidence. The South
Indian literature refers to an oversea kingdom called Savaka,
Savaka, or Javaka. We find references to it in the famous epic
Manimekhalai 6 which mentions its kings Bhumicandra and
Punyaraja, and says that the latter was ruling the earth with
his capital at Nagapura. That this country is the same as

I. Ibid, p. 313. 2. Ibid., p. 64.

3. Ibid,, pp. 92, 205. From these two instances we may conclude
that although Zabag was in the borderland between India and China, it
was technically included in the former. But an earlier writer, Ibn
Rosteh ( c. 903 A. D.) f definitely says that 'behind Multan are many
kings as far as Djawaga, The king of Djawaga is not included among
Indian kings because he lives in the island' ( Ibid p. 78.)

4. Gerini Researches, p. 131.

5. The connection of Zabag with Java, Sava or Davaka, is
merely offered as a suggestion which need not be pressed very far in the
present state of our knowledge.

6. V.R.R. Dikshitar Studies in Tamil Literature and History,
p. 83 ; S.K. Aiyangar Manimekhalai in its Historical Setting, pp. 147,
I49 165, 180. 182, 199.

216 APPENDIX

Zabag admits of no doubt. As Ferrand has remarked, the two
names Javaka and Zabag are the only ones in Indonesian
geography which can be equated with certainty. 1

The Ceylonese Chronicle Cullavamsa has preserved a
detailed account of two invasions of Ceylon by CandrabhSnu,
king of Javaka. ' Now an inscription of a king CandrabhSnti,
king of Tambralinga, has been found at Caiya, near Ligor.
Dr. Coedfcs has shown, by a comparison of the dates, that king
Candrabhanu of Ligor, who issued this inscription in 1230 A.D.,
must be the king referred to in the Ceylonese Chronicle. 8 It
is thus definitely established, that by J&vaka, the Cullavamsa
meant a part of the Malay Peninsula.

Candrabhanu was helped in his second expedition by the
Pandyas. But, sometime later, the PSndya king boasts in his
inscriptions of having defeated the Javaka king as well as
Ceylon. Now in an inscription of Jatavarman Vira Pandya,
dated A.D. 1264, he claims to have defeated and killed the
SSvaka (king), and in an inscription of the following year we
find among the list of defeated kingvS, king of Kadaram (and no
king of Savaka) 4 The conclusion is almost irresistible, that
Savaka or Javaka and Kadara both refer to the kingdom of
Candrabhanu in the Malay Peninsula. Thus the Ceylonese
Chronicle agrees with the Arab writers in locating Javaka in
the Malay Peninsula. Further, the Arab writer Sulayman,
writing in 851 A.D., has remarked that "Kalah-bar and Zabag
are ruled over by the same king." Kalah-bar is, no doubt, the
same as Keddah, and thus Keddah and Zabag formed a united
kingdom.

1. Op. cit., p. 172.

2. Cullavathsa, Ch. 83, vv. 36-48; Ch. 88 vv. 62, 75. See ante,
pp. 197 ff

3. B.K.I., 1927, pp, 463 ff, See ante, p. 198.

4. These inscriptions are reported in S. I. Ep Rep. (No. 588 of
1917, and No. 356 of 1906). Their contents are summarised by Ferrand,
J. A., n-XX, pp. 48-49.

SUVAKNADVlPA 217

The Arab writers of the tenth century A.D. refer to the
extension of the authority of Zabag over the various islands of
the Pacific. But Aba Zayd Hasan ( c. 916 A.D. ), our earliest
authority in this respect, clearly distinguishes the kingdom of
Zabag proper, with its capital city called Zabag, from the
island called Sribuza, 1 forming a dependent state of the
former. In Sribuza we cannot fail to recognise Sri-Vijaya.
Thus it is quite clear that Zabag was originally a different
kingdom, and had extended its authority over Srl-Vijaya at
least as early as the tenth century A.D. It is, no doubt, due to
this extension of political authority of Zabag over the various
islands, that the Arab writers gave the name of Zabag to the
whole of Malayasia. But the island of Zabag proper was always
distinguished from the Zabag empire comprising the archipelago.
In view of the agreement between the accounts of Arab writers
and the Cullavamsa, we are justified in locating the kingdom of
Zabag proper in the Malay Peninsula, probably in the
neighbourhood of Ligor.

The discussion of the identity of Zabag cannot be closed
without a reference to the Chinese data. It is now generally
accepted that the kingdom referred to as San-fo-tsi in the
Chinese documents from tenth to fourteenth century A.D. is
the same as Zabaj or Zabag. But there are two implications
in this theory which, in my opinion, have been tacitly accepted,
without sufficient evidence. These are : (1) that San-fo-tsi,
Che-li-fo-che, Zabag, and Sribuza are all equivalent to Sri-
Vijaya ; and (2) that all these are to be identified with modern
Palembang.

As regards (1) we have seen above that Zabag is different
from Sribuza, and this alone is sufficient to show the weakness
of the theory. Che-li-fo-che and Sribuza are both obviously
equivalent to Sri-Vijaya, but the same cannot be said either of
San-fo-tsi or of Zabag. M. Aurousseau, no doubt, equates San-fo-
tsi with Che-li-fo-che, 8 but Ferrand is of opinion that it

i. Ferrand, op. cit, p. $6. 2. B.E.F.E.O. Vol. XXIII, p. 476.

28

218 APPENDIX

is impossible to equate San-fo-tsi with Sri-Vijaya from a
philological point of view. 1 Further, the Chinese accounts
do not seem to imply that Chc-li-fo-che is the same as San-fo-tsi.
The history of the Ming Dynasty* says that San-fo-tsi was
formerly called Kan-da-li ( or Kan-to-li ). According to Chau
Ju-kua 8 San-fo-tsi began to have relations with China
during 904-907 A.D. Both these statements are definitely
against the proposed identification. It is true that Cuda-
manivarman and Sri-Mara-vijayottungavarman are referred
to as kings of San-fo-tsi, but that does not prove
that San-fo-tsi was Sri-Vijaya. For, as stated above, we have
no right to infer from the Cola records that these two
were primarily kings of Sri-Vijaya. We should rather regard
them as kings of Kadaram, and Sri-Vijaya was included in their
realm. Thus the fact remains that no satisfactory evidence
has yet been brought forward to show that San-fo-tsi is equiva-
lent to Sri-Vijaya. It is noteworthy that there is no reference
to Che-li-fo-che in Chinese records after 742 A.D., ''while
San-fo-tsi makes its appearance early in the tenth century A.D.,
shortly after the first reference to Zabag by Arab writevs. Of
course if ultimately San-fo-tsi proves to be the same as Sri-
Vijaya, we have to dissociate the former from Zabag.

The identity of San-fo-tsi and Palembang also does not
appear to be beyond question. It evidently rests upon the
following statement of Ma Huan ( 1416 A. D. ) : "Ku-kang is
the same country which was formerly called San-fo-tsi ; it is also
called Palembang, and is under the supremacy of Java."* The
History of the Ming dynasty also informs us that sometime
before 1397 A. D., "Java had completely conquered San-fo-tsi
and changed its name to Ku-Kang. 5

i. Ferrand, op. cit. p. 170.

2 Groeneveldt Notes, p. 68. Ferrand, op. cit. p. 24.

3. Edited by Hirth and Rockhill, p. 62. Ferrand, op. cit, p, 14.

4. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 73. I have substituted San-fo-tsi for
San-bo-tsai of Groeneveldt.

5. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 71.

SUVARNADVlPA 219

These statements appear to be decisive in favour of the
identification of San-fo-tsi with Palembang. But when we
read the detailed account which follows the statement quoted
above from the History of the Ming dynasty, the view is
bound to be changed. It tells us in effect that when the
Javanese had conquered San-fo-tsi, they could not keep all the
land and the whole country was disturbed. It then describes
how two Chinese adventurers set up as kings of San-fo-tsi
and Ku-Kang. From this Groeneveldt has made the obvious
inference that Ku-Kang and San-fo-tsi were different places. 1
It might appear that Ku-Kang was the name given to that part
of the extensive kingdom of San-fo-tsi which was under the
control of Java, and by a natural process, the name of the former
kingdom, San-fo-tsi, came to be applied to the latter, which
originally formed merely a part of it. But then we should
remember that San-fo-tsi and Ku-kang are treated as two
different places in Tao-yi Che-lio ( 1349-50 A.D. ), i.e. long
before Java finally conquered San-fo-tsi. All these certainly go
against the view that San-fo-tsi is equivalent to Ku-kang
or Palembang. 8 That San-fo-tsi and Palembang were
different places is also proved by the account of Chau Ju-kua
who includes Pa-lim-f ong or Palembang among the dependencies
of San-fo-tsi.* Palembang was thus a dependent kingdom
of, and therefore different from, San-fo-tsi.

We have thus no satisfactory evidence for the identification
of either (1) Srl-Vijaya with San-fo-tsi, or (2) of San-fo-tsi with
Palembang. It is needless to add that the identification of
Srl-Vijaya with Palembang, so far as it is based on these two
identifications, cannot be seriously maintained. At the same

1. Ibid., f.n, 4 ; cf. also p. 76.

2. Ferrand, op. cit. p. 167. The attempts of Rockhill and Pelliot
to explain away the difficulty, and maintain the identity of San-fo-tsi
and Palembang do not appear to me to be at all successful (cf, T'oung
Pao, 1915, pp. 134-5 ; 1933. P- 376).

3. p. 62.

220 APPENDIX

time it is only fair to add that there is a strong presumption
in favour of this identification, as the inscriptions of Srl-Vijaya
have been found in this locality, and one from Palembang
itself seems to refer to the foundation of Sri-Vijaya. 1

The only safe clue for the identification of San-f o-tsi is to
regard it as equivalent to Arabic Zabaj or Zabag. In that case
San-fo-tsi should be located in Malay Peninsula, and several
circumstances support this view.

The Chinese writers of the Ming period assert that Kan-
to-li was the old name of San-fo-tsi. The History of the Liang
dynasty refers to several embassies from Kan-to-li to China,
one between 454 and 465 A. D. and three others in 502,519 and
520 A. D. The history of the Chen dynasty refers to another
embassy from the kingdom in 563 A. D.

Gerini a was the first to point out that "there was, and
still exists, Khanthuli or Kanturi district on the east coast of
Malay Peninsula which may very well be old Kan-to-li of
First Sung and Liang periods/' But the chief objections
against this view were the generally accepted identification of
San-fo-tsi with Palembang, and the fact that Kan-to-li is
mentioned as a separate state in 820 A. D., whereas Palembang
was called by the Chinese as Chc-li-fo-che for at least 150
years before that.

Now the view propounded above disposes of both these
objections, and I may point out that Kan-to-li (or Kin-to-li),
which is regarded by the Chinese as the old name of
San-fo-tsi, resembles to a great extent Kadara or KidSra, the
Cola name for the kingdom of Cudamanivarman and Srl-Mara-
vijayottungavarman who are referred to in the Chinese records
as kings of San-fo-tsi. It is thas legitimate to suggest, as a
not improbable hypothesis, that the first Chinese name,
Kan-to-li, corresponded to Kadara, while the second Chinese
name, San-fo-tsi was equivalent to Arabic Zabaj or Zabag.

i. Cf. B.K.I., 1931, pp. 508 ff. J.G.I.S., Vol. I, p. 63, f,n. 7.

2. Gerini Researches, pp. 602 ff,

SUVARNADVlPA 221

Except for the addition of a nasal sound in both Kan-to-li
and San-fo-tsi, these two names seem to correspond quite
well with Kadara and Zabaj. Further, it is to be noted that
corresponding to the variant forms Kadara and Kidara in
the Cola records, we have Kan-to-li and Kin-to-li in the
Chinese annals. 1

The location of Kan-to-li, as suggested by Gerini,is supported
by the fact that both the History of the Liang dynasty and
Han Yii mention Kan-to-li along with Champa and Kamboja.
Ma-Twan-lin also enumerates in a course with Kan-to-li, P'an-
p'an, Lan-ya-hsiu, and Po-li, the first two of which can be
definitely located in Malay Peninsula. All these would suit
the location of Kan-to-li in Malay Peninsula far better than in
Sumatra, as Ferrand does, on the authority of Ibn Majid ( A.D.
1462 ) who mentions Kandari as a general name of Sumatra.

I am indebted to Dr. Coedfcs for an additional argument,
which the Chinese sources supply, in favour of locating San-
fo-tsi in the Malay Peninsula.* The Chinese Charts of Father
Ricci ( beginning of the 17th century) place Kieou-Kiang and
San-fo-tsi in the middle of the Peninsula. 3 Dr. Coedfcs,
however, observes that the Charts give fantastic localisations
for this region ; besides their late date takes away much of the
weight of their evidence.* But taken in conj action with the
other Chinese evidences quoted above, the Charts constitute, in
my opinion, an important evidence.

4.

We must now go back to the Nalanda copper-plate which
refers to the Sailendra kings as ruling over YavabhQmi and

1. Not being a sinologue or a philologist I do not stress these
points very much, but merely offer a suggestion to scholars who are
competent to deal with them. It may be noted that my main thesis does
not rest on these identifications.

2. J.G.I.S., Vol I., p. 63.

3. The Geographical Journal, Vol. LI 1 1, pp. 20-21.

4. Op. cit. f.n. 3.

222 APPENDIX

Suvarnadvipa. Pandit H. Sastrl repeats the generally accepted
view when he says : "The Yavabhuini and the Suvarnadvipa
arc evidently identical with the Yavadvipa and the Suvarna-
dvipa islands spoken of in Sanskrit works like the Ramayana
or the Kathasaritsagara, and are unquestionably the modern
Java and Sumatra/' 1

Unfortunately, none of these identifications is beyond
question. Ferrand has challenged the identification of Yavadvipa
of Ramayana with Java, and whether one agrees with him or
not, it is difficult to ignore altogether the arguments of
considerable weight which he has brought forward in support
of his thesis that Yavadvipa denotes Sumatra and not Java. 8
But we shall see presently that Yavabhuini is perhaps to be
taken in a different sense altogether.

As regards Suvarnadvipa, the assumption that it unques-
tionably denotes Sumatra is as unwarranted as the assertion
that immediately follows, m., 'that Suvarnadvipa is different
from Suvarnabhumi/ The question has been fully discussed
above in Bk. I., Chap. IV, and it has been shown that the
name Suvarnabhumi or Suvarnadvipa was indifferently used
to denote a wide region including Burma, Malay Peninsula,
and the islands of the Indian archipelago.

I am inclined to agree with Pandit II. Sastri that the author
of the Nalanda plate regarded Yavabhumi and Suvarnadvipa
as one and the same. If this view be correct we can easily
equate YavabhQmi with the Arabic Zabag and its variants, and
may thus hold Yavabhumi-=Zabag=Suvarnadvipa=San-fo-tsi.

5.

As a result of the preceding discussions we can now
consider briefly the relations of the Sailendras with Sumatra
and Java.

i. Ep. Ind., Vol. XVII. p. 312.

3. Ferrand, op. cit, pp. 173 ff - s e ante, pp. 98 ff.

SUVARNADVIPA 223

It is well-known that, with the exception of Stutterheim, all
scholars locate the seat of authority of the Sailendras in
Sumatra. It will appear from what has been said above that
there is no warrant for such an assumption. In view of the
insufficient nature of evidence, it is unwise to be dogmatic one
way or the other, but I hope it will be readily conceded, that
barring the identification of San-fo-tsi with Palembang, which
is at best a very doubtful one, there is no evidence to regard
Sumatra as the home of the Sailendras. Only in the Cola
Inscriptions of eleventh century A. D. they are referred to as
kings of Ka^ana and Sri-Vijaya, very much in the same way
as the Arab writers from the tenth century onwards regard
Sribuza as one of the dependent states of Zabag. The growing
commercial importance of Srl-Vijaya, and perhaps its past
historical record, invested it with special importance, and hence
it formed an important centre of the growing Sailendra
Empire. The evidence at our disposal proves nothing beyond
this.

Indeed, the case for Java is much stronger. We find here
two records, definitely referring to the Sailendra kings, and
belonging to the earliest period of their history known to us.
At least one of these kings, Rakai Panamkarana, appears in the
famous Kedu inscriptions among the predecessors of the
Javanese kings of Mataram. It is also possible to identify
Samarottuiiga, mentioned in a Kedu record dated 847 A.D., with
Samaragravlra of the Nalanda Inscription. 1 These facts,
added to the existence of Barabudur and other famous temples,
may tempt us to the view that Java was the original home of
the Sailendras. The temptation is increased if we remember
how easy and natural it would be to derive Zabag from Yava,
and how certain statements of Arab writers would admirably
suit Java. We may refer, for example, to three characteristics

i. See later, Bk, III, Chap I.

224 APPENDIX

of Djftwaga which are constantly referred to by Arab
writers.

(1) There is a volcano in the neighbourhood of Djawaga.

(2) There is no land behind DjSwaga, and it is the last
of the islands.

(3) The whole country is fertile, and the villages succeed
one another without interruption, so that the cries of cocks in
the morning would be heard continuously for 100 parsangs.

Now all those characteristics would be more applicable to
Java than Malay Peninsula. The statement that Djawaga is
situated on the borderland between India and China may not be
regarded as a decisive argument against Java, if we remember
that the, curly Arab writers had a somewhat vague notion in
this respect. It is clear, however, that some of their positive
statements, particularly those about the latitude and longitude
of Djftwaga, as compared with those of Sribuza and other well-
known places, cannot apply to Java. It is thus legitimate to
hold that Djawaga perhaps originally meant Java, but later,
the Arab writers located it in some place in the Malay
Peninsula. This confusion can be easily explained by the
transference of the scat of authority of the Sailendrag from
Java to Malay Peninsula in the ninth or tenth century A.D.
Perhaps the Arab writers applied the original name of the
Sailcndra kingdom to its new seat of authority.

The only other alternative view, which can be justified by
available evidences, is to locate Djawnga, and therefore the seat
of authority of the Sailendras, in Malay Peninsula from the
beginning.

The Malay Peninsula is indeed poor in antiquities as
compared with Java, but not poorer in this respect than Sumatra,
where Zdbag is usually located. Wilkinson goes even further.
Referring to the antiquities and some other characteristic
features of the northern part of the Peninsula he remarks :
"All these facts point to the past existence of powerful states

SUVARXADVlPA 225

and high standard of wealth and luxury in the north of the
Malay Peninsula." 1

Quite recently, Dr. II. G. Quaritch Wales made an
archaeologieal survey of several ancient sites in the Malay
Peninsula, and has emphatically endorsed the hypothesis that
the centre of the mighty empire of the Sailcndras was in Malay
Peninsula. He holds that Caiya or Jaiyu was the first
capital of this empire, and when this city was overrun by the,
Khmers in the twelfth century, the capital was transferred
further south to Nakhon Sri Thauimarat."

Indeed it is in Mal-iy Peninsula alone thut we can trace tho
rule of the Sailcndras from beginning to end. Tho Ligor
inscription, the scries of South Indian inscriptions referring to
friendly or hostile relations of Tolas with Soilcndra* of Kat&ha
or Kadfira, tho continuity of similar relations between Kacjftni
and Siivaka king on the one hand and the Pilndya and (.'eyloncse
kings on the other, and tho location of Zabag or Siivuka in Malay
Peninsula, all these constitute a strong argument in favour
of regarding Malay Peninsula as the home of the Sailondrus,
and the seat of the great empire over which they ruled.

Such an assumption would further explain tho spread of
the Malay people and their language all over Indonesia, and
the extensive application of the name Yavn, Jiiwa or its
equivalents in Sumatra, Cambodia, Laos, mid A imam. In other
words, the trace rf tho old Malay empire of tho Sailondras
called Javaka can still be found in the wide-spread charartor
of tho Malay race and language all over Indonesia, and the wide
use of the geographical name to its different constituent parts.

80.

Iii conclusion we must lay stress on tho fact that thorn
are some reasons to believe that the Sailondnis wero now
arrivals from India. This would explain the introduction of
NSgari alphabet in their inscriptions and of a now namc,Kalmga,

1. R. G. WilkinsonHistory of the Peninsular Malays, 3rd Ed. p. 15.

2. I.A.L.. Vol. IX, No i, pp. 1-25. See ante, pp. 80-7.

29

226 APPENDIX

for Malayasia, as we know from the Chinese records. The
portion of the western coast of Bay of Bengal, which was known
as Kalinga in old days, contained the famous port 'Paloura'
which was from very early times the port of embarkation for
the Far East. The same region was ruled over in the sixth
and seventh centuries A.D. by the Ganga 1 and Sailodbhava*
dynasties, and behind them, in the Vindhya region, we find
another dynasty called the Sailas. In the preamble of an
inscription, this family is said to have descended from Gangs,
the daughter of Himalaya (8ailendra), and the first king
is referred to as Sattaramsa-tilaka (ornament of the Saila
family). 8 Thus the Ganga, Sailodbhava, and Saila dynasties
may all be the source of a name like Sailendra.

The Gangas were a wide-spread tribe, the most notable
being the Gangas of Kalinga and Mysore. According to the
tradition preserved among the Gangas of Kalinga, Kamarnava,
giving over the paternal kingdom to his uncle, set out with
his four brothers to conquer the earth, and took possession of
the Kalinga country. The accession of Kamarnava would fall
in the eighth century A. D., according to the regnal years
supplied in their records. 4 But, before him also, Ganga kings
ruled in Kalinga, probably from the sixth century A. D.

The title 'Lord of Tri-Kaliiiga' was borne by the Ganga kings
from the sixth century A. D. till a late period. Now the
expression Tri-Kaliiiga is an old one, and is perhaps preserved
even now in the Teliiiga or Talaings of lower Burma. If so,
we may find here an evidence of the Ganga conquest of lower
Burma in the eighth century A. D. From this base in lower
Burma they might have rapidly spread to the Far East.

1. Cf. e.g., Urlam plates, Ep. Ind.. Vol. XVII, pp. 330 if.

2. Cf. e g., Buguda Plates, Ep. Ind., Vol III, p. 41*

3. Ep. Ind., Vol, IX, p. 41.

4. Cf. Ep. Cam, Vol. IX. Introduction, p. 9 J Eng. Translation of
Inscriptions, pp. 39 ff. 5 Ep. Ind. Vol. VIII, APP. I, p. 17, and the
references given there. J.B.O. R.S., Vol. XVIII, pp. 285 ff.

SUVARNADVlPA 227

It is interesting to note that the names of the Gfifiga kings
end in Maharaja or Mahadhinlja, as e.g. Visnugopa-MahadhirSja,
and Srl-purusa Prthvi-Kongani-Maharaja. In the former of these
we get an almost exact form of "Visnvakhyo MaharajanSma,"
i.e. having the name of Visnu Maharaja, which we meet with
in the Ligor inscription. It is not, of course, suggested that
the two kings were identical, but the agreement in the very
unusual fashion of including Maharaja as part of the name is
certainly striking. Reference may also be made to the city
named Gangganegara (see p. 188, f. n. 2).

Thus while no definite conclusion is possible at the present
state of our knowledge, indications are not altogether wanting
that the Sailendras originally came from Kaliiiga, and spread
their power in the Far East through Lower Burma and
Malay Peninsula. l

I. Since the publication of my paper on the Sailendras in
B.E.F.E.O., Vol. XXXIII, pp. 121 ffof which this appendix is the
English original several views have been put forward regarding the
origin of the Sailendras. Dr. Coedes suggested that they were kings
of Funan, and being evicted therefrom, carved out a kingdom in Java
in the 8th century A.D., and claimed back their own possessions in the
9th cent. A.D. (J.G.I.S., Vol, I, pp. 66 ff.). Dr. J. Przyluski opooses this
view and holds that Sailendravams'a derives its origin from 'Sailendra',
originally an Indonesian deity of the Bataks, enthroned upon a high
mountain, who has been successively identified with Siva Girisa and
the supreme Buddha (J.G.I.S,, Vol. II, pp.28 ff.), Prof. K. A, Nilkanta
Sastri infers from some expressions in the Cangal Ins. of Safijaya
that the Pandyan country was the original home of the Hindu-
Javanese immigrants and their rulers, and he thinks it possible that
Safijaya himself was a member of the Sailendravamsa. ( T. B. G.,
1935, pp, 610-11). The last two views do not appear to me to be
even plausible, The view of Coedes is not in conflict with my theory.
As regards Prof. Sastri's criticism (op. cit.) of this theory, it is partly
based on misunderstanding of my arguments. For the rest, I may point
out to him that my view is a tentative one, and is not to be regarded as
one that can be definitely proved. Indeed this was quite clearly
stated in my paper, and has been properly understood in this spirit
by others,

Book III

KISE AND FALL OF THE INDO-JAVANESE

EMPIRE

BOOK III

Chapter I.

THE KINGDOM OF MATARAM

We have seen above that several Hindu kingdoms
flourished in Java as early as the fifth or sixth century A. D.
But we do not possess any detailed knowledge of the history
of the country till we coine to the eighth century A. D. About
the beginning of this century, a powerful kingdom was founded
in central Java by king Sannaha. Some information about
him and his successor is furnished by the Cangal inscription. 1
This record is engraved on a stone slab, which was discovered
among the ruins of a Saiva temple at Cangal, on the plateau of
the Wukir Hill in Kedu. It contains twelve verses in Sanskrit.
It begins by stating that a Sivalifiga was set up in the Saka
year 654, i.e. 732 A. D., by a king named Safijaya, son of
Sannaha. Then, after an invocation of the gods Siva (w. 2-4),
Brahma (v. 5), and Visnu (v. 6), it praises the island of
Java (v. 7), and refers to its king Sanna or Sannaha who ruled
righteously like Manu for a long time. lie was succeeded
by Safijaya (vv. 8-12) who was ruling at the time the record
was set up. Certain statements of the inscription have led
scholars to think that the dynasty had recently emigrated
to Java from a locality named Kurijara-Kunja in South India.
The relationship between Sannaha and SaSjayu, although

i. Edited by Kern, V. G., Vol. VII, pp. 117 ^ ; and commen-
ted on by B. C. Chhabra, J. A. S. B. L. Vol. i pp, 34 ff. The latter has
pointed out that there is no definite statement in the record in support of
the generally accepted interpretation that Sanjaya was the son
of Sannaha, and that Safljaya's sister had some share in the
Administration,

230 THE KINGDOM OF MATARlM

generally presumed to be that of father and son, cannot be
regarded as absolutely certain on account of some lacuna in
the record.

King Safijaya is referred to in this inscription as a
"conqueror of the countries of neighbouring kings." Ordinarily
such a vague statement really does not mean much, but there
is literary evidence to corroborate it in this particular instance.
A long list of the countries conquered by king San jay a, son of
Sena (presumably the same as Sauna), is given in a book
called Carita Parahyangan. After mentioning his conquests
in Java and Bali it says :

"From there Safijaya proceeded to the Malayu country ;
he fought with Kernir (Khmer), the rahyang Gana is defeated.
Again he fought with Keling, sang Sri-Vijaya is defeated.
He fought with Barus, ratu Jayadana is defeated. He fought
with China, pati Srikaladarma is defeated. Then rahyang
Sanjaya returned from his over-sea expedition to Galuh 1 ".

It is difficult to decide how far we can accept, as historical,
the detailed account, given above, of the victories gained by
SaSjaya. While Dr. Stutterheim is inclined to take the passage
at its face value 8 , Dr. Krom finds in it nothing more than a
possibility that SaSjaya led some expeditions across the sca. s
Dr. Stutterheim even goes further. He takes SaSjaya to be
the founder of the Sailendra dynasty, referred to above in
Book II, and regards his conquests, as mentioned in Carita
Parahyangan, as mere precursors of the military expeditions,
which the Sailendras sent against Champa and KSmboja in the
latter part of the eighth century A.D. (sec ante pp. 156 ff.)

i. T. B. G., 1920, pp. 417 ff. Quoted by Stutterheim in
"Javanese period in Sumatran History," p. 18. Carita Parahyangan
is written in old Sudanese. A short account of the book, together
with the Text, is given by Poerbatjaraka in T. B. G., Vol. 59, pp.
394 if, 402 ff.

2* Op. cit. Stutterheim would, however, substitute Champa
for China.

3. Krom Geschiedenis 2 , p. 126,

SUVARNADVlPA 231

This revolutionary theory of Dr. Stutterhcim is based upon
a Grant, engraved on two copper-plates 1 , which are now in
Srivedari Museum, Solo, but of which the original find-spot is
unknown. The inscription is almost an exact copy of two other
inscriptions, one on stone, and the other on a copper-plate,
which were previously known. But as some parts of the
inscription were missing in both, the identity could not be
recognised. Of these two copies the find-spot of the stone
inscription is not known, though it was believed by Ilouffaer to
have come from eastern Java. The copper or rather bronze
plate was found at Nagadireja, Kedu.

The copper-plate grant at Solo is dated 907 A.D., but the
stone inscription bears a date, which was formerly read as 84x
Saka, and then doubtfully restored as 830 Saka (928 A. D.).
In view of the fact that the Solo inscription gives the date
clearly as 907 A.D., Dr. Stutterheim naturally suggests that
as the date of the grant, which may hereafter be referred to
as the Kedu grant.

The inscription records a grant made by Sri Maharaja Fakai
Watukura dyah Balitung Sri Dharmodayu MahaSambhu in A. D.
907. The most interesting part of the inscription, for our
present purpose, is the reference to a long line of past kings
whose names are invoked as the protectors of the kingdom.

The list of kings is as follows :

1. Rakai Mataram, sang ratu Saiijaya.

2. Sri Maharaja rakai Paiiangkaran.

3. Sri Maharaja rakai Panunggalan.

4. Warak.

5. Garung.

6. Pikatan.

7. Kayuwangi.

8. Watuhumalang.

9. Watukura.

i. T. B. G., Vol. LXVI1 (1927), PP- 172.

232 THE KINGDOM OF MATARlM

Dr. Stutterheim first of all identified the second king of the
list, Sri Maharaja rakai Panangkaran, with Kariy&na Panam-
karana, the Sailendra king referred to in the Kalasan inscription.
This identity of a king of the Mataram dynasty of Java with
a Sailendra king is the starting point of his theory. He then
proceeds to identify SaSjaya with the grandfather of Balaputra-
deva, called Tira-vairi-mathan-anugat-abhidhana' in the
Nalanda copper-plate, mainly on the ground that the name of
the former, "All-conqueror," could be quite well a synonym
of the latter "heroic destroyer of enemies." Proceeding still
further, he identifies Panamkarana, who founded the temple
of T&ra ( Kalasan ins. ) with SarnarSgravira who married
TarS ( Nalanda charter }, on the assumption that the queen
Tara" was identified with the goddess. Lastly he identifies
Dharmasetu, the name of the father of Tara, as read by
Pandit II. Sastri in the Nslanda charter, with DharmapSla,
the famous emperor of Bengal, on the ground that the name
Dharmapala could, in poetry, be regarded as a synonym of
Dharmasetu. 1 Thus, on tho whole, Sanjaya and his son, the
first two kings of Mataram referred to in the Kedu grant, are
regarded by Dr. Stutterheim as the first two Sailendra kings
mentioned in the Nalanda charter as grandfather and father
of Balaputra. He then draws the obvious conclusion that
while the Sailendras were really the Javanese ruling dynasty
of Mataram, a son, perhaps the youngest son of Panangkaran,
ruled over Sumatra, which was a part of the Javanese empire
under the Sailendras.

It must be admitted at the very outset, that the somewhat
elaborate structure, raised by Dr. Stutterheim, rests on a
rather weak foundation. The utmost that can be said in
favour of his theory is that it is not an improbable one, but
the amount of positive evidence which he has yet been able to
bring forward is insufficient to command a general assent to
his views.

i. "Javanese Period etc.," pp. 6-13,

8UVARNADVIPA 23S

As regards the identification of Dharmasetu and DharmapSla,
the name of the king, as written in the Nalanda charter, is
clearly Varmasetu. Dr. Stutterheim has referred to the use of
the word Dharmasetu in the Kclurak inscription. But the word
is very commonly used, in the sense of a pious foundation, in
the inscriptions of the Pfilas and other dynasties 1 , and no
emphasis, therefore, need be laid upon it.

The identity of Panariikarana and Samaragravlra on the
basis of the common name, Tara, can hardly be accepted as
satisfactory, and the same may be said of the identification of
Sanjaya and Vlra-vairi-mathana.

The only view of Dr. Stutterheim that would readily
command assent, is his identification of Panangkaran, the
second king in the Kedu list, with the Sailendra king of the
same name, mentioned in the Kalasan inscription. Now this
one identification would have gone a great way to support the
theory of Dr. Stutterheim, if we could readily agree with him
that the names of kings mentioned in the Kedu inscription are
those of Sanjaya and his descendants. If that were so,
the identity of any one of them with a Sailendra king would
have certainly justified us in regarding the kings of Mataram
as belonging to Sailendra family. Unfortunately, as Dr. Bosch
has pointed out, 8 there is nothing in the Kedu inscription to
justify the assumption that the kings mentioned in it all belong
to the same family. It merely refers to a long series of kings,
who protected Mataram before king rakai Watukura, in whose
reign it was recorded. Thus while all these kings must be
regarded as having reigned in Mataram before rakai Watukura,
they cannot, without further evidence, be regarded as his
ancestors.

We may, therefore, resume the history of Java, from where
we left it, without any further reference to the theory of

1. E. g. in line 47 of the Monghyr copperplate of Devapala.
( Ind. Ant, Vol. XXI., pp. 254-257 ). Cf. J. G. 1. S., Vol. Ill, pp. no-u.

2. T. B G., Vol. 69 (1929), p. 136.
30

234 THE KINGDOM OF MATARIM

\

Dr. Stutterheim, which would put an altogether new complexion
on the whole situation. We have seen that early in the
eighth century A. D. king Sannaha had founded a kingdom in
central Java, where his son and successor SaSjaya, a great
follower of Saivism, was ruling in 732 A. D. Tradition of a
later age credits this king with extensive conquests, but the
amount of truth contained in it we are unable to verify. The
very fact, however, that such traditions have gathered round
a historical king, would justify us in regarding him as a powerful
ruler, who extended his authority far beyond the borders of his
own realm 1 .

Now as the eighth king in the list, furnished by the Kedu
inscription, reigned at the beginning of the tenth century A. D.,
the first king may be presumed to have flourished about the
beginning or middle of the eighth century A. D. It would,
therefore, be quite reasonable to identify the first king Sanjaya
in that list with king Sanjaya of the Cangal inscription
dated, 732 A. D.

This identification at once enables us not only to connect
king Sanjaya with Mataram, but also to gather some information
regarding the later history of his kingdom. But unfortunately,
here, again, the language of the Kcdu inscription is not
altogether free from ambiguity. Bosch has justly raised a
doubt if the expression 'rakai Mataram sang ratu Sanjaya',
with which the list of kings begins, really refers to one person,
VIA., king Sanjaya, rakai Mataram, or to two persons, one
called 'rakai Mataram', and the other called 'sang ratu Sanjaya'. 8
In view of the fact, that all the other kings are referred
to under their rakai title, the probability is that 'rakai Mataram'
refers to Sanjaya. So far as the Kedu inscription goes, the title
'rakai Mataram' has no more significance than the other rakai
titles which follow. But the fact remains that from the

1. Stutterheim finds a reference to king Sanjaya and his burial-
temple in the Pojok Ins. (B. K. I. 1933, PP- 282 if.).

2. T. B. G., Vol. 69 (1929)1 p. I3 6 > f - n 4-

SUVARNADVlPA 235

beginning of the tenth century A. D., when the Kedu
inscription was recorded, the kingdom of rakai Watukura and
his successors, who ruled over both central and eastern Java,
was officially styled 'the kingdom of Mataram'. SaGjaya,
rakai Mataram, may thus be looked upon as the founder of the
kingdom ; at least there is no doubt that he was regarded
as such in the tenth century A. D.

Now, Mataram was the name of a famous kingdom in Java,
ruled over by Muhammadan Sultans since the last years of the
sixteenth century A. D. Krom is inclined to regard this also
as the scat of the old kingdom of that name. He rightly
points out that the adoption of the title 'pmice of Mataram'
by some members of the royal family of Majapahit shows that
the name never went out of use, and it is, therefore, exceedingly
likely, though of course by no means certain, that the
Muhammadan Sultans merely revived the use of an old
name. 1

On the other hand, Dr. Stuttcrheim locates the kingdom
further north. Now, the charters of the Mataram dynasty
make it clear that the Kraton (the royal palace), and therefore
also the capital of the kingdom, was at first at Medang.
Dr. Stutterheim identifies this place with Mendang Kamulan
in Grobogan (Semarang) on the basis of a local tradition
recorded by Sir Stamford Raffles a . But, as Krom points out,
the new Kraton, according to the tradition recorded by Raffles,
was founded from Prambanan, and so the old Kraton of
Mataram kingdom must be placed in or near Prambanan.
The proximity of the big temples, Lara-Jongrang, Plaosan, and
Sajivan also fully support this view. 3

1. Krom Geschiedenis 2 , p. 169.

2. "Javanese Period etc", p. 19. Cf. also, B. K. I., Vol. 89
( ! 93 2 ) PP 278-82 where Sturterheim has shown that the burial-temples
of the kings were not necessarily in the vicinity of the Kratons
(royal palaces).

5. Krom Geschiedenis 2 , p, 170.

236 THE KINGDOM OF MATARlM

Now, as we have seen above, there are good grounds
to identify the second king of the Kedu inscription,
Sri Maharaja rakai Panangkaran with the Sailcndra king of
that name mentioned in the Kalasan inscription, dated 778 A. D.
It would follow in that case that during the reign of king
Sanjaya, or his successor, a part at least of central Java
was conquered by the Sailendras.

How did the dynasty of Sanjaya fare in the hands of the
Sailendras ? The question is difficult to answer. But one thing
seems to be certain. The find-spots of Sailendra inscriptions,
as well as the reference to a Sailendra king as one of
the protectors of the kingdom of Mataram, leave no doubt
that that kingdom, or the Jogyakcrta district, passed from the
hands of Sanjaya's family. But, as we shall see later, the
last three or four kings of the list supplied by the Kedu
inscription must have been ruling in the same region. These
kings may be presumed to belong to the family of Sanjaya, or at
least to claim their rights to the kingdom from him. Thus
central Java, or at least the southern part of it, belonged to
the kingdom founded by SaSjaya's father, from the beginning
of the eighth to the beginning of the tenth century A. D., except
for the period of Sailendra supremacy. The question naturally
arises, where did the family rule during this interval ?

A passage in the New History of the T'ang Dynasty perhaps
enables us to answer this question. It says : "The king lives
in the town of Java (Cho-p'o). His ancestor Ki-yen had
transferred the capital to PVlu-kia-sseu towards the east.
On different sides there are twenty-eight small countries, all
acknowledging the supremacy of Java". 1

This account is supplemented by two important details
in other Chinese texts. From these we learn that the transfer
of the capital took place during the period A. D. 742-755,

i. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 13, as corrected by Pelliot, B. E, F.
E< O., Vol. IV, pp. 224-25,413-

SUVAENADVlPA 237

and that the new capital was eight days' journey to the east
of the then capital, Java. l

There are good grounds to believe that the information
given in the New History of the T'ang Dynasty is true of
the last part of the ninth century A.D.* Thus the Chinese
account almost inevitably leads to the conclusion that when
the dynasty ruling in central Java was ousted therefrom
by the Sailendras, about the middle of the eighth century A.D.,
it was forced to shift its headquarters to another town, about
100 or 150 miles ( 8 days' journey ) to the east ; but that
before the end of the ninth century A.D. the dynasty had
recovered its old capital.

We may thus conclude that the Sailendra supremacy in
Java extended from the middle of the eighth to the middle or
end of the ninth century A. D., and that during this period, the
indigenous dynasty ruling in central Java had to shift its head-
quarters to the east.

In the present state of our knowledge we cannot be sure
of anything except this broad outline of events. The few
records of the period from central Java, that are known to us,
do not enable us to lift the thick veil of obscurity that surrounds
the whole period.

A copper-plate from Pengging in Surakarta contains an order
issued by rakarayan i Garung, who is probably the same as
rakai Garung, the fifth king of the Kedu list. The date
of the record, either Saka 751 or 761 (A. D. 829 or 839), is also
not in conflict with the proposed identification. But then the

1, Pelliot, ibid. The Chinese name of the new capital of Java
has been rendered by Ferrand as Ba-ru-ja-sik=(Kawi) Waruh Gresik.
According to Ferrand this place is still well-known under its abridged
form Gresik, being the port popularly known as Grisse, within the
Residency of Surabaya (J. A. ii-XIH, (1919), pp. 304-6). The name
seems to correspond to Sanskrit Bharukaccha.

2. It was evidently later than the embassy that was sent from
Java between 860 and 873 A. D. See below ; also Krom Geschiedenis,
p. 160.

238 THE KINGDOM OP MATARAM

title Maharaja is wanting. 1 Another inscription, found at
Bolong in Magelang, and dated Saka 753, probably belongs to
the same king, but no royal name is mentioned in the record".

Next in chronological order is the stone inscription of
Karangtengah (Kedu) dated 847 A. D. which refers to king
Samarottu&ga. It has been already noted above that this
king has been identified by some with the Sailendra king
Samar&gravira. But this is by no means certain, as the name is
also borne by purely Javanese kings of later date. Besides,
Goris interprets the record as belonging to rakai Paminggalau
and dated in A. D. 797. 8

An inscription found at Argapura, and dated A. D. 804,
refers to rakai Pikatan, but then without any royal title. This
rakai Pikatan appears to be also named pu Manka. Now one
pu Manuka issues the stone inscription of Perot, dated 853, but
with the title rakai Patapan. In the same year we come across
rakai Pikatan occupying a lower position than rakai Patapan.
The identity of these two, and of both, with the sixth king in the
Kedu list, is again a matter of extreme uncertainty.*

After all these uncertainties we enter into a somewhat clearer
atmosphere with Sri Maharaja rakai Kayuwangi, the seventh king
of the series. He is known from three copper-plate inscriptions,
all found at Ngabean, near Magelang. These are dated in the
years A. D. 879% 880, and 882 7 . From the last we know

1. O. V. 1920, p. 136 ; Ibid, 1928, p. 65.

2. T. B. G., Vol. 70 (1930), PP- I57-I70.

3. O. J. O., No. IV. The date is corrected by Goris in T. B. G ,
1930, p. 1 60, f.n. 5.

4. O. J. O., Nos. V, Vi, VIII. Krom, op. cit. p. 156. f. n. 6.
T. B. G., 1927, pp. 194-5. The Gandasuli (Kedu) inscription issued
by one rakryan Patapan was formerly dated 847 A. D. But according
to Goris the date is 787 A. D. (T. B. G., 1930, p. 160, f.n. 3.)

5. O. J. O., No. XII. 6. K. O., No. X.

7, K. O., No. XV. rl Maharaja rake Gurunwangi, mentioned
in a record of 886 A. D. ( O. J. O., No. XVIII), may be a variant qf
Kayuwangi.

SUVABNADVlPA 23d

that the official name of the king was Sajjanotsavatungga.
He may be identified with Svarni Kayuwangi, with the proper
name Sukri, mentioned in a record dated 861 A. D. 1
Kayuwangi appears as the name of a locality near Dieng in
another record dated 866 A. D.

With the exception of the first king Safijaya, all the
predecessors of Sajjanotsavatungga are known to us only by
their Indonesian titles, which were evidently derived from
place-names'. Their Sanskrit names, probably the names
adopted at the time of coronation, are unknown to us.

The inscription of Sajjanotsavatungga, dated 880 A. D.,
refers to the dedication of a silver umbrella to the Bhat&ra of
SalingsiiHjan. Expression like this refers to the custom of
deifying a king after his death, and then referring to him as the
God (Bhatara) of the locality where his body is cremated.
This custom was very familiar in Java and other countries
in the Far East, and very often a temple was erected on
the cremation ground, containing an image of the tutelary
deity ( Buddha, Siva etc. ) with the features of the king.
In many instances Javanese kings are referred in later
documents simply as His Majesty ( or God ) cremated at
such and such a place. In the present instance, we must
presume that one of Sajjanotsavatungga's predecessors was
cremated at Salingsingan, and deified after death. A later
record refers to an endowment made in 878 A.D. by the
king cremated at Pastika. This implies that a predecessor of
Sajjanotsavatungga, perhaps his immediate predecessor, was
cremated at Pastika and deified.*

I. O. J. O. f No. VII. 2. Not. Bat. Gen., 1889, p. 16-

3. Krom Geschiedenis pp. 154, 181.. King Airlangga was,
e. g., called rakai Halu, because his coronation took place in a locality of
that name. The raka title assumed by a king might have been borne
by other persons too, but not probably during $he life-time of the
king himself.

4. Krom Geschiedenis 2 , pp. 179-181,

240 THE KINGDOM OP MATABAM

The eighth king rakai Watuhumalang is known from an
inscription dated 886 A.D. 1 .

With one or two exceptions all these inscriptions were
found in the valleys of Kedu and Prambanan. It would
thus appear that the series of kings mentioned in the Kedu
inscription had been ruling in some part of this region. But
in addition to this series we come across in this region
inscriptions of other kings who seemed to have ruled in the
same period. A copper-plate charter, dated 892 A.D. 8 , was
issued by a king named rake Limus Sri Devendra. Another
undated copper-plate, most probably originating from Dieng region,
refers to His Majesty Gwas Sri Jayaklrtivardhana. 3 Another
undated inscription belonging to this period refers to the
king cremated at Kwak (in the neighbourhood of Ngabean) 4 .
Whether these kings really belong to the same series of kings,
assuming different raka titles at differcnjt times, or whether
they were independent rulers in different localities, we do
not know. In any case it would be hazardous to draw any
definite conclusions from these records, beyond the obvious
fact that central Java continued to be the chief seat of culture
and political authority throughout the eighth and ninth
centuries A.D.

With the ninth and last king of the series we definitely
pass to eastern Java. As we possess several inscriptions of
this king, with variations of names, and as the find-spots of
these records have formed the basis of important conclusions,

1. K. O., No IX - also O. V., 1925, p. 42.

2. Rapp, Oudh. Comm., 1911, pp. 6-9. Stutterheim thinks
that Devendra was really an official and not a king, the royal title
being applied to him through mistake in the copy of the original
inscription which alone we possess. (B. K. 1., Vol. 90, pp. 269-70.)

3. O. J. O., No. CIV. 4. O. J, O. ( No.CVI.

StJVARNADVtPA

241

we shall begin with a list of these records, arranged in
chronological order.
Serial No. Date
I. 1 898 A.D.

2.' 901 A.D.

3.* 002 A.D.

Find-spot.

Penampihan
(Kediri)

Panaraga
(Madiun)

Unknown.

(probably
E. Java/

003 A.D. Vanagiri

G. 5 007 A.D. Blitar.

7-9." 007 (908) A.D

10. 7

11.
12."

907 A.D.

010 A.D.

Three copies
of the Kedu

Inscription.

(at present in
Amsterdam)

Do

Surabaya

Name of the king.

Sri haji Balitung Ut(t)-
ungadeva.

Sri Maharaja rake Watu-

kura dyah Balitung.
Maharaja rake Watukura

X

dyah Balitung Sri
lvarakcavotsavatuu-

, ga.

Sri Maharaja rakai Watu-
kura dyah Balitung

Sri Dharmodaya

Mahasambhu.

As in No. 3.
As in No. 4.

Do.

Watu Kura

X

Sri Maharaja Kegalu
(rake Galu or rake
Halu) dyah Garuda-
mtika Sri Dharmo-
daya Mahasama (Ma-
haSambhu).

2. O. J. O., No. XXIII.
4. T.B.G., 1934, p. 269.

i. O.J.O., No. XXI.
3. O. J.O., No, XXIV.

5. O. J. O., No. XXVI,

6. These have been discussed above in connection with the
grant edited by Dr. Stutterheim. For the other two copies, cf. O. J. O.,
Nos. XXVII andCVIIl.

7. Nos. 8 and 9 (fragmentary) are edited by F. H. Van
Naerssen ( Aanwinsten van het Koloniaal Instituut over 1934.
PP. 135 ff.)

8. O.J.O., No., XXVIII.

31

242 THE KINGDOM OF MATARlM

The full form of the royal name thus consists of a special
raka-title, an Indonesian proper name (Balitimg) and the
Sanskrit coronation name. The most striking thing is the
different coronation names assumed by the king, ru.,
Uttungadeva, Ivara-Keavotsavatunga, ISvarake&iva-samaro-
ttunga and Dharmodaya MahaSambhu. Even the personal
names and rake titles are changed, for we have both dyah
Balitung and dyah Garudamuka and rake Watukura and
rake Galu (or Halu). 1

These records show that the king reigned at least from
A.D. 898 to 910, and that his dominions certainly included
both eastern and central Java. This is further corroborated
by the fact that an officer named rakryan i Watutihang Sri
Sangramadhurandhara, serving king Balitung in the east
in 901 A.D., 2 is also referred to in a record of the self-same
year at Baratengah in Bagelcn, i.e., to the west of Matariim.%
and in two other records in central Java, dated 902 and
906 A.D.*

Dharmodaya MahaSambhu was succeeded by Daksottama
in or before A.D. 915. He is referred to as rakryan ri Hino
Sri Bahubajrapratipaksaksaya in the Panaraga inscription of
901 A.D. 5 , as Mapatih i Hino in another record dated 906
A.D. fl , as Mahamantri Sri Daksottama Bajrabahu ( or Bahu-
bajra ) Pratipaksaksaya in two records dated 907 A.D. 7 and
rakryan mahamantri i Hino Bahubajrfiprapaksaksnyj, in
the Surabaya inscription dated 910 A.D. 8 These records
clearly indicate that he occupied a very high position during
the reign of his predecessor, and it may be presumed that he
belonged to the royal family.

1. For an explanation of the official titles that occur in these and
following passages, cf. Book IV, Chapter VI.

2. O.J. O., No. XXIII. 3. O. J. O., No. XXII.

4. O. V., 1925, pp. 41-9; O. J. O., No. XXV.

5. O. J. O., No. XXIII. 6. O. V., 1917, p. 88.

7. O. J. O., No. XXI. Krom-Geschiedenis 2 p. 186, f. n. 5.

8. O. J. O., No. XXVIII.

SUVARNADVlPA 243

Of Daksottama, as king, we possess four inscriptions.
The Singasari inscription, dated 915 A.D., supplies us the
earliest definite date for his rule. 1 There are, besides, two
copper-plate grants of this king. 2 As his records have
been found both at Singasari and Prambanan, it is certain
that, like Balitung, he also ruled over both eastern and
central Java.

The stone inscription of Daksottama, found at Gata 3
(Getak) near Prambanan, is dated in the Saiijaya era. It is
difficult to determine the epoch of this era, which is at present
known only from this and another record, found at Taji*,
in the same locality. The dates in these two records were
read as 693 and 604, and Daksottama is known to have reigned
between A.D. 910 (the last date of his predecessor) and A.D.
919 ( the earliest date of his successor ). It is, therefore,
obvious, that the era must have been started sometime between
A.D. 217 and 226. But no era, either in Java or in India,
is known to have originated about this time.

Recently Dr. Goris has offered a solution of this difficulty 5 .
lie reads the dates of Gata and Taji inscriptions respectively
as 176 and 172 (or 174), and there remains, therefore, no
difficulty in ascribing the foundation of the era to the well-
known king Saiijaya. Goris believes that the era was started
by Sanjaya to commemorate the foundation of his Linga
temple in A.D. 732, referred to in the Cangal inscription. The
date 176 of the Gata inscription of Daksottama would then
correspond to A.D. 908. This is in conflict with the fact,
recorded above, that we possess a record of king Balitung
dated 910 A.D. Goris, however, points out that this date is
obtained only in a very suspicious copy of an old inscription,
and, barring this doubtful record, the latest known date of
Balitung is 907 A.D. Thus, on the basis of his new theory,

i. O. J. O., No. XXX. 2. K. O., Nos. XVII, XX.

3. O. J. O., No. XXXV. 4. O. J. O., No. XXXVI,

5. Feestb. Bat. Gen., Vol. I. (1929), pp. 202 ff.

244 THE KINGDOM OF MATARAM

he regards Daksottama as having ascended the throne in
908 A.D. The Taji record, dated in year 172 (or 174) of the
Safijaya era, and corresponding to A.D. 904 (or 906), would
then fall in Balitung's reign. It must be added, however, that
the new readings of dates by Goris have not yet met with
general acceptance.

Goris proceeds further, and infers from an analysis of the
find-spots of inscriptions, that Balitung was originally a king
of Kediri in eastern Java, and only gradually extended his
authority towards the west, till he became master of Prambanan
some time after 904 or 906 A.D. Goris thinks that Balitung
probably married in the Mataram dynasty, and thus became a
member thereof. In Balitung and his successor Daksottama,
Goris finds the authors of an east-Javanese restoration of the
Mataram house of central Java, who made an attempt to link
up the past with the present by putting Safijaya's name as
the founder of the family, and using an era associated with
his name.

Stutterheim, while editing the Kedu inscription, suggested
that the change of the king's name to Dharmodaya MahaSam-
bhu in 907 A.D. might be due to the marriage of the king
which is referred to in the record. 1 But this view, as well
as the theory of Dr. Goris, that Balitung gradually extended his
authority towards the west, is in conflict with Ins. Nos. 4 and 5,
noted above, and also with the two records, dated 901 A. D.,*
of SaAgramadhurandhara, a high official of Balitung, found
respectively in eastern and central Java, showing that by
that year both these territories were in possession of king
Balitung. 5 It is, however, just possible that Balitung was
originally a ruler of eastern Java, his marriage in c. 901
A. D. made him the legitimate ruler of Mataram, and he
took this opportunity to assume a new coronation name.

i. T. B. G., Vol. 67 (1927), p. 179. 2. See p. 242, footnotes 23.
3. Krom Geschiedenis 2 , p. 187. Cf. also T.B.G., 1934, p. 275.

SUVABNADVIPA 245

Thus although Dr. Goris' view offers a simple and novel
interpretation of the history of the period, it is difficult to give
an unqualified support to it. 1

Still less can we follow Dr. Goris in his conjecture, that
the famous temple of Lara-Jongrang, at Prambanan, was the
burial-temple of Balitung, constructed by his minister and
successor Daksottama. This theory is based upon, and may
be regarded as a further development of, Rouffaer's conjecture,
that the Lara-Jongrang temple was a foundation of Dakso-
ttama. * Perhaps the only basis of this conjecture is the
east-Javanese style which distinguishes Lara-Jongrang from
other buildings in central Java. But this point will be more
fully discussed in connection with the history of Javanese art.

We must yet refer to another theory about Balitung before
we close this episode. Dr. Stutterheim took the name of the
king, Dyah Balitung, as equivalent to 'Prince of the island of
Biliton/ and while developing his views about the greatness of
the Mataram dynasty, he regarded the name as "the remainder
of an old apanage name from the time of Mataram's hegemony
over the Rhio-Linga archipelago." s

The very fact, that so many theories have been evolved
round the names of king Balitung and his successor Daksotta-
ma, shows that their importance in Javanese history is being
gradually realised. For, whatever we might think of these
theories, the fact remains that these two kings had, for the
first time, brought about a hegemony of central and eastern
Java, so far, at least, as available materials enable us to
judge.

1. Dr. Stutterheim fully endorsed the view of Goris (B. K. I.,
Vol. 90, pp. 268 ff), but has since modified it in T.B.G. 1934, pp. 277-8.

2. B. K. I., Vol. 74, (1918), pp. 151-163. Rouffaer has made
other suggestions about Daksa, but they must be regarded as merely of
a tentative character.

5. Stutterheim "Javanese Period etc." pp. 18-19.

246 THE KINGDOM OF MATARlM

Daksottama was succeeded by Tulodong in or before 919
A.D. Although we have no definite epigraphic record of this
king in central Java, there is hardly any doubt that he ruled
over both central and eastern Java. This plainly appears from
the fact that during his rule the self-same officers are known to
have held office in central and eastern Java. 1 Besides, his
inscription refers to places in central Java, apparently under
his authority. *

Two inscriptions, a copper-plate dated in 919 A.D. 3 and a
stone inscription at Sukabhumi dated in 921 A.D. *, refer to
this king by name, while two others may be doubtfully attribu-
ted to him. a The full name of the king is rake Layang dyah
Tulodong Sri Sajjanasanmatanuraga-(ut)tunggadeva.

Tulodong was succeeded by Wawa. In a recently discovered
copper-plate he is said to be the son of rakryan Ladheyan who
was buried in the forest. a It has been suggested by Krom

1. Krom Geschiedenis 2 , pp. 189-90, 194. Mr. H. B. Sarkar
has shown good grounds for the view that the copper-plates of this king,
dated 841, were granted in central Java (Dacca University Studies
No, i, pp. 102 ff).

2. A Copper-plate (K. O. f No. XX) confirms the grant of the
king, cremated at Pastika, referred to above, by rakryan mapati i Hino
Ketudhara in Kartika, 919, A. D. The grant, which was confirmed
before by Daksottama, evidently related to certain places in central
Java. But as Tulodong was already a king in the month of ravana,
919 A. D., the confirmation in the month of Kartika, 919, should be
referred to the reign of Tulodong, although Ketudhara may be the same
person, who served under Daksottama with the name Ketuvijaya
(K. O., No. XVII). This supports the view that Tulodong ruled over
both central and eastern Java. This view is also confirmed by the
absence of invocation to Hindu gods in the imprecatory formula of his
record, a custom followed invariably in eastern Java.

3. K. O., No, I. 4. O. V., 1924, p. no.

5. Krom - Geschiedenis, p. 188, f. n. i. O. V,, 1919, p, 67.
O.J.O., No. XXXIV.

6. O. V., 1928, pp. 66-69.

SUVAHNADVlPA 247

that he is identical with the high dignitary rakryan mapatih i
Hino, Mahamantri Sri Ketudhara who figures in the record of
A.D. 919., and served under both Daksa and Tulodong 1 .

Four other records of Wawa are known. The colossal
stone inscription, now known as Minto-stone 2 , probably
belonged originally to Ngendat to the north-west of Malang.
It is dated in 924 A. D., and gives the full title of the king
as rakai Pangkaja dyah Wawa Sri Vijayalokanainottunga. The
opening verses of the inscription are identical with those of
the inscription of Daksottama dated 915 A. D. and thus
establish a close relationship between the two. It refers to an
endowment of a village and gives various details of it.

The second inscription 3 of Wawa comes from Berbek,
near Kediri, and is dated in 927 A. D. A third inscription*
on stone (now in the Museum at Majakerta) is dated probably
in 926 A. D. All these inscriptions refer to the highest official
of the kingdom, rakryan mapatih i Hino dyah Sindok Sri
Isanavikrama, who succeeded Wawa.

The fourth record of Wawa's reign is only partially known
from one only of the six copper-plates of which it originally
consisted 8 . It was found in the slope of the Kavi hills,
and records the foundation of a temple which probably stood
near by. The record gives the name of the king as
Sri Maharaja rake Suinba dyah Wawa. This different raka
title is also met with in the Berbek inscription.

Thus all the records of Wawa's reign come from east Java,
and there is no positive evidence to connect him with
central Java. There is, however, an indirect evidence which
shows that Wawa was the last ruler of Mataram. This is

1. See f. n. 2 on p. 246. Krom Geschiedenis 2 , p. 199.

2. O. J. O., No. XXXI. B. K. I , Vol. 73 (1917), p. 30.

3. O. J. O., No. XXXII.

4. A portion of this record is published in O. J. O., No. XXXIII
cf. Not. Bat. Gen., 1888, p. 84.

5. Kern- V. G., Vol. VII, pp. 179 ff.

4$ THE KINGDOM Otf

furnished by a comparison of the benedictory formulas used
in official records. Up to the time of Wawa, the formula used
is : "May gods protect the Kraton (palace) of His Majesty at
Me<Jang in Matartai". In the time of his successor Sin<Jok
the formula is changed into "May gods protect the Kraton of
the divine spirits of Medang." These divine spirits no doubt
refer to the deified ancestors of the king. It is thus clear that
after Wawa's time MatarSm had ceased to be the land of living
kings who no doubt shifted to the east As the old formula
is used in a record of 927 A. D., and the new one of Sirujok
makes its first appearance in a record dated 929 A. D.,
the year 928 A. D. may be regarded as the date of the great
change which meant the end of MatarSm as the seat of the
royal power 1 .

We have thus traced the history of the kingdom of Matar&m
in central Java, from the time of its founder Safijaya (732 A. D.)
up to the end of the reign of Wawa (927 A. D.), who may be
regarded as the last king who ruled from a capital in central
Java. 1 Henceforth central Java gradually loses its importance,
and its place is taken by eastern Java as the seat of political
authority and the centre of culture and civilisation.

The kingdom of Mataram occupied the most prominent
place in Java during these two eventful centuries (732-927 A. D.),
and it is quite in the fitness of things that its history should
form our chief subject of study. But other smaller states also
flourished in Java during the same period, and we must now
proceed to give some account of them.

Reference may be made in the first place to the stone
inscription discovered at Dinaya 8 to the north of Malang.

I. Poerbatjaraka Agastya, p. 65, f. n. i. Krom Geschiedenis
(pp. 189-90). 2. Cf. p, 254 f.n, i.

3. The inscription was originally edited by Bosch in T, B. G ,
Vol. 57, pp. 410-44. Some additions and corrections were made in
O. V., 1923, pp. 29-35. Shortly after this the two missing fragments of
the stone were discovered, and Bosch wrote a further article on the
subject in T. B. G., Vol. 64 (1924), pp. 227-291.

SUVARljfADViPA 249

This inscription refers to king Devasimha and his son Gajayfina,
also called Limwa. GajaySna's daughter Uttejana was married
to Pradaputra. The son of Uttejana was the king who issued
this inscription in order to record the construction of a temple
of Agastya 1 . This king, whose name is unfortunately not
legible, also built a fine stone image of Agastya, in order
to replace a decayed one made of sandalwood, which was built
by his predecessors. This image was consecrated in A. D. 760
with elaborate rituals performed by priests versed in Vedic lore,
and the king endowed the temple with cows, slaves, and other
necessaries for performing the cam and other sacrificial
ceremonies of the god.

The Agastya-worship, recorded in this inscription,
has induced some scholars to connect it with the Cangal
inscription of SaSjaya. It is urged by them that as the
dynasty of SaSjaya originally belonged to South India, it
must have brought with it the cult of Agastya, which was
so very prevalent in that region, and that, therefore, the author
of the Dinaya inscription probably also belongs to the same
dynasty. As this inscription belongs to the eastern part of Java,
it is presumed that the dynasty shifted there from central Java,
as the Chinese annals have clearly recorded. Poerbatjaraka
has even gone so far as to identify GajaySna of Dinaya
inscription with king Ki-yen who removed the capital.

This view, of which a clear and detailed exposition is
given by Krom and Poerbatjaraka 9 , was, ID any case, at
best, a working hypothesis, particularly as there is no direct

. Y. v

1. This is the view of Poerbatjaraka (Agastya, p. 53). Dr.
Bosch, who edited the inscription, interprets the inscription differently.
He holds that Uttejana, the daughter of Gajayana, was married to king
Janantya, son of Prada, and that this Jananiya was the author of the
inscription. ( op. cit. ).

2. Poerbatjaraka Agastya, pp. 109-110. Krom Geschiedenis,
pp. 141-42.

32

250 THE KINGDOM OF MATARlM

reference to the Agastya-worship in the Cangal inscription.
This view was so long upheld, mainly because of the absence
of any definite information regarding the successors of SaSjaya,
but it has lost its force with the discovery of the Kedu
inscription. It is not, of course, impossible that the kings
mentioned in the Dinaya inscription belonged to the family
of Saiijaya, but until more definite evidence is available, it is
better to regard them as belonging to a local dynasty of eastern
Java. There is nothing to indicate that SaSjaya's rule extended
to the whole of eastern Java, and even if it did, it is likely that
the decline in the power of the dynasty, as a result of the
conflict with the Sailendras, gave opportunities to a subordinate
chief to establish an independent kingdom. On the whole,
therefore, we must hold that although the successors of
Sanjaya shifted their capital to the cast, it is just possible
that there was another, perhaps even more than one, kingdom
in eastern Java, until the time of Dharmodaya, who is
definitely known to have ruled over the whole of eastern
Java.

If we now remember that there are several kings, referred
to above, who cannot be definitely associated with any known
ruling dynasty, we must, at least provisionally, assume the
simultaneous existence of three or more ruling families in
Java, including the Sailendra and Sanjaya dynasties, and the
ruling family of Dinaya inscription, during the century
commencing from the middle of the eighth century A.D.
The Chinese annals refer to several embassies from Java
during this period, and it is difficult to ascertain from which
of these kingdoms they were sent. We have already stated
above ( Book I. Chap. VI. ) that the Chinese annals of the
T'ang dynasty refer to Java as Ho-ling. But from A.D. 820
onwards they use the term Cho-p'o. Whether this change in
name reflects any political change in Java, it is difficult to
say, though, as has been pointed out above, the period probably
coincides with the end of the Sailendra power, and the
revival of Mataram dynasty.

SUVAKNADVIPA 251

At least six embassies were sent from Ho-ling to China
during the Tang period. The dates of these six embassies,
according to Pelliot, arc A.D. 640 (or 648), 666, 767, 768, 813
(or 815), and 818 A.D. Two embassies were sent from Cho-p'o
in A.D. 820 and 831. 1 Two more embassies arc referred to
in the History of the Tang Dynasty, one between 827 and
835 A.D., and the other between 860 and 873 A.D. a It is
evidently from these embassies that the Chinese gathered
the detailed account of Java which we find in the two histories
of the Tang Dynasty.

The Old History of the Tang Dynasty gives us interesting
information regarding the general condition in Java. 8

"Ho-ling ( Kaling ) is situated on an island in the southern
ocean

"The walls of the city are made of palisadoes ; there is
also a large building of two stories, covered with the bark of
the gomuti palm ; in this the king lives and he sits on a couch
of ivory.

"When they cat, they use no spoons or chopsticks, but put
the food into their mouth with their fingers.

"They have letters and know a little of astronomy.

"Wine is made out of the flowers of the cocoa-nut tree ;
the flowers of this tree are more than three feet long and as
large as a man's arm ; these are cut and the juice is collected
and made into wine, which is sweet and intoxicating."

The New History of the Tang Dynasty gives a somewhat
more detailed account of Java.*

"Kaling is also called Java ; it is situated in the southern
ocean.

"The people make fortifications of wood and even the
largest houses are covered with palm-leaves. They have
couches of ivory and mats of the outer skin of bamboo.

1. B. E. F. E. O., Vol. IV, pp. 286-7.

2. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 15*

3. Ibid, pp. 12-13. 4- Ibid, PP- 3-5-

252 THE KINGDOM OF MATARlM

"The land produces tortoise-shell, gold mid silver, riiiuo*
ceros-horns and ivory. The country is very rich ; there is a
cavern from which salt water bubbles up spontaneously. They
make wine of the hanging flowers of the cocoapalm ; when they
drink of it, they become rapidly drunk. They have letters
and are acquainted with astronomy. In eating they do not use
spoons or chopsticks.

"In this country there are poisonous girls ; when one
has intercourse with them, he gets painful ulcers and dies, but
his body does not decay.

"The king lives in the town of Java. His ancestors Ki-yen
had transferred the capital to Po-lou-kia-sseu towards the
east 1 . On different sides there are twenty-eight small
countries, all acknowledging the supremacy of Java. There
are thirty-two high ministers and the Da-tso-kan-hiimg is the
first of them.

"On the mountains is the district Lang-pi-ya where the king
frequently goes to look at the sea.

"When at the summer-solstice a gnomon is erected of
eight feet high, the shadow at noon falls on the south side and
is 2 feet 4 inches long.

"In the year 813 they presented four slaves, parrots of
different colours, pinka birds and other things. The Emperor
honoured the envoy with the title of Left Defensor of the Office
of the Four Inner Gates ; the envoy wanted to waive this title
in favour of his younger brother, for which the Emperor praised
him and bestowed a title on both/'

The account given in the New History of the T'ang Dynasty
probably reflects the condition in Java towards the close of
the ninth century A. D., as it refers to an embassy during

i. Groeneveldt's translation of this paragraph, as already noted
above, is amended in the light of Pelliot's criticism in B, E. F. E. O., Vol.
IV, p, 225, f. n. 2.

SUVARNADVlPA 253

A. D. 860 and 873. It would appear, then, that there was
at that time a powerful consolidated kingdom in Java, with
at least 28 small subordinate states under its suzerainty. This
is in full conformity with the sketch of political history
we have drawn above.

The account definitely locates the capital in the town of
Java ; at least that is the literal meaning of the passage.
Pelliot, however, thinks that although that is the literal
meaning, the spirit of the passage seems to be that the capital
had been transferred from Java to the east, and there it
remained at the time the account was drawn up. 1 This
translation would, no doubt, be more in keeping with the
information derived from Javanese inscriptions, which
undoubtedly portray a gradual transfer of political authority
towards the eastern regions. It is to be noted, however, that
even in the subsequent period, c.g. in the History of the Sung
dynasty (9GO-1279), Java is still regarded by the Chinese as the
capital of Java. 8 Whether this view is right or wrong, it
appears that the Chinese were, even at a later date, under the
impression that the capital was at Java, and this possibly
would not have been the case, if the New History of the T'ang
Dynasty definitely recorded a permanent transfer of the capital
from Java to the east. We may thus hold that Java was the
capital of the kingdom throughout the T'ang Period, except for
a brief period of interval when it was transferred to the east,
some time between 742-755 A. D.

The position of the capital city of Java cannot be definitely
determined. The History of the Sung Dynasty (960-1279)
gives the following particulars regarding its location : "Going
from the capital to the cast, one comes to the sea in a month.
On the west, the sea is at a distance of forty-five days. On the
south it is three days to the sea. On the north the distance
from the capital to the sea is five days". 3 Now this descrip-

1. B. E. F. E. O., Vol. IV p. 225, f, n. 2.

2, Groeneveldt Notes, p, 15. 3. Ibid.

254 THE KINGDOM OP MATABlM

tion would locate the capital city somewhere near modern
Surakarta, and it is to be noted that many inscriptions of the
dynasty have been found in this region. It is not very far from
the district known as Mataram in later days, and thus we may
provisionally fix the region round Surakarta as the centre of
the kingdom of Mataram. There is also hardly any doubt that
the Chinese accounts, at least of the ninth century A. D., refer
to this kingdom, and the picture of the powerful kingdom of
Java, with twenty-eight small subordinate states under it,
refers to a period when the hegemony of eastern and central
Java had been accomplished by Dharniodaya MahaSainbhu, or
his immediate predecessors. 1

I. I have not taken into consideration, in the above account, of
some theories of Dr. Stutterheim based on very recent discoveries.
He thinks, e. g,, that Kayuwangi was a descendant of Pu Apus mentioned
in an inscription found at Krapjak (T. B. G. 1934, p. 89). He has also
advanced a hypothesis about the relationship of the last three kings of
Mataram which will be noted in connection with Sinciok's reign
(T. B. G. 1935. PP. 459 ff -).

The copper-plate grant of a king named ri Maharaja Wagisvara
found near Gorang gareng (Madiun) raises interesting problems. The
date of the record has been read by some as 829 and others as 849.
Stutterheim, accepting the latter view, suggests that this king Wagisvara
is either identical with Wawa or ruled after him and before Sinqlok.
Stutterheim identifies this king with Sri Maharaja Wagisvara sang
lumah ri kayu ramya mentioned in another record ( K. O., No.
XVIII), the date of which was hitherto read as 746, but which Stutterheim
proposes to read as 846 Saka. This would mean that Wawa succeeded
Wagisvara, was succeeded by him, and again followed him on the throne :
In other words, they were identical, or rival kings. (T. B. G., 1935, PP
420 ff. ; J. G. I. S., Vol. Ill, pp. 1 1 i-a).

Chapter II.

RISE OF EASTERN JAVA

With the accession of Sindok, some time between 927 and
929 A.D., the centre of political authority, as we have seen
above, definitely changed to eastern Java. At the same time
we notice a complete collapse of culture and civilisation in
central Java. The reason for these twofold changes, and the
circumstances that brought them about, arc alike unknown
to us, and various theories have been offered as a solution
of the problem.

According to one view 1 , the* governor of the eastern
regions successfully revolted against his master, and the
struggle between the two powers, accompanied by massacre
and ravage on an unusually large scale, brought about the
downfall, not only of the kingdom but also of the culture of
central Java. As against this it may be pointed out that the
monuments of central Java bear no signs of wilful destruction,
and while the successful revolt of a governor may bring
about the political change, it cannot account for the sudden
end of a flourishing culture and civilisation. As we shall
sec later, even when the political authority passed from
Kediri to Singhasari, the former continued for many years
to be the seat of culture and civilisation. Besides, the facts
that the new king of eastern Java still invoked the aid of
the gods of Mataram, and continued to employ the high
officials who formerly served in central Java, are weighty
arguments against a struggle between central and eastern
Java.

i. Cf., e. g., Veth Java, Vol. I (1896), p. 45. Brandes Enc.
Van. Ned. Ind. (First Edition), Vol. Ill, p. 112.

256 BISE OF EASTERN JAVA

Another view, originally propounded by Ijzerman, 1
attributes the change to a popular superstition. He thinks
that some such natural phenomena, as the eruption of a
volcano, might give rise to the notion that it was divine
manifestation to the effect that central Java should no longer
be inhabited. The account of a severe epidemic in east-
Javanese tradition has been traced by some to a vague
recollection of an actual outbreak of an epidemic in central
Java. In either case, the eruption or the epidemic would be
interpreted by the priests as a token of divine wrath against
the territory in question, and this would exactly fit in with
the views of the people who would naturally be anxious to
seek their own safety by a timely flight.

This theory no doubt furnishes a good explanation for
the total abandonment of central Java. But then we should
expect a sudden and wholesale migration of a people struck
by an overwhelming panic or disaster. According to Krom,
however, this does not appear to be the case, for several
records indicate the continuity of a social and cultural life
in central Java in the early years of the east Javanese
period. It must be remembered, however, that the dates,
relied upon by Krom, arc rather uncertain, inasmuch as the
records might refer to the ninth or tenth century A.D. As a
matter of fact, there is not a single inscription from central
Java which we can definitely ascribe to a period after Sindok's
accession in 929 A.D. 8 A third view, suggested by Krom, 3
attributes the change to a deliberate policy on the part of
the kings of Java. The kings were not unmindful of the
possible danger to which they were exposed from the side
of the Sailendra kings. They had exercised authority in
central Java for nearly a century and possibly a section of

1. "Beschrijving der oudheden nabij de grens der residence's
Soerakarta en Djogdjakerta" (1891), pp. 5 ff.

2. Krom Geschiedenis, pp. 201, IQI. O. V , 1928., p. 64.

3. Krom Geschiedenis, p. 201.

SUVARNADVlPA 257

the people had still sympathy for them. They undoubtedly
cherished the ambition of reconquering the lost territories.
It was easy for their fleet to transport an army to central
Java within a comparatively short time. All these would
induce the kings of Java not only to shift their seat of
authority to the east, but deliberately to leave central Java
to its fate, so that it would soon be reduced to a no-man's
land and act as a protection against the possible invasion of
the Sailendra kings from that side.

This view satisfactorily explains the removal of the seat of
authority to the east, but it would be too much to believe that
the kings of Java would deliberately sacrifice a flourishing
region merely at the possibility of a foreign invasion. Nor is
it necessary to resort to such a hypothesis in view of the
new facts discovered. As we have seen above, the kingdom of
Matarfun continued to exist from the middle of the eighth
century. During the period of Sailendra supremacy it shifted
its seat of authority towards the east. Although it recovered
central Java by the middle of the ninth century A. D., and
probably the official capital was once more formally restored,
the epigraphic evidences cited above leave no doubt that the
political centre of gravity, if we might use the expression,
still remained in the east. This might be partly an effect of
the first change, and partly the result of a deliberate policy,
as suggested by Krom, but the fact admits of no doubt. The
culture and civilisation of central Java continued for nearly a
century after this, but gradually the shifting of political
authority produced its natural effect. Slowly but steadily
the flow of Javanese life and culture followed the political
change, and central Java lost political importance as well as
cultural pre-eminence. Some unknown reasons,- such as a
volcanic eruption, outbreak of an epidemic, or the ravages by
the fleet of the Sailendras might have hastened the progress of
decay, but the decay itself had become inevitable on account of
the transfer of the seat of authority towards the east.
33

258 RISE OP EASTERN JAVA

But whatever may be the reasons, the broad fact remains
that from the middle of the tenth century A. D. the Hindu
culture and civilisation began to lose its hold in central Java,
as was the case in western Java about five hundred years
before. Henceforth the political centre shifted to eastern Java,
which remained, for another period of five hundred years,
the only stronghold of Hindu culture and civilisation.

Sindok, the first ruler in eastern Java, seems to have left
an impression upon posterity which was not shared by any
of his immediate predecessors or successors. A century later
Airlangga claims relationship with this king, although the
genealogy had to be traced twice through the female line 1 .
In the twelfth century, the author of Smaradahana-kfivya says,
with regard to the reigning king KameSvara, that he owed his
life to Sri Kanadharma i.e. Sindok 2 , Yet Sindok can hardly
be regarded as the founder of a new dynasty, and seems to have
gained the throne by ordinary rules of succession. In the
reign of Tulodong we find him mentioned as rakai Halu Sri
Sindok, occupying the position of the second high official 3 .
When Tulodong was succeeded by Wawa, Sindok occupied the
highest rank in the kingdom, next only to the king, and is
referred to as rakryan mapatih i Hino dyah Sindok Sri
ISanavikrama*. According to all precedents he was thus
designated as the future king, and there is no reason to suppose
that his accession marked any new departure in any respect.
There must, therefore, have been some special reason why his
name was singled out by posterity, and he was regarded as the
remote ancestor of a long line of Javanese kings which came
to an end with the rise of Singhasari. For the time being we
can only suggest that probably he was not the son of his
predecessor, but belonged to a different family, and was hence
regarded as the founder of a long line of Javanese kings.

1. Calcutta Stone Inscription ; Kern V.G., VII, pp. 85. flf.

2. 38 : 15. Cf. T.B.G., Vol. 58 (1919), P. 472.

3. K. O., No. 1 ; O. J. O., No. XXXIV.

4. O.J.O.,Nos. XXXI, XXXIII.

SUVAKNADVlPA 259

In this connection we may refer to two recent hypotheses
about Sindoka. Poerbatjaraka held that he had married
the daughter of king Wawa and thus inherited the throne 1 .
This view was opposed by Stutterheim who held instead that
one rakryan Bawang was the father-in-law of Sindok. Later,
Stutterheim advanced the view that the daughter of this rakryan
Bawang, named rakryan binihaji Sri ParameSvarl dyah Kebi,
was not the wife, but the grandmother of king Sindok, and the
queen of Daksa. Stutterheim thus regards Sindok as the
grandson of Daksa. He further suggests that Tulodong and
Wawa were sons of the above queen (?) who succeeded, one
after the other, before Sindok 9 . It is needless to add that all
these can at present be regarded as only possible hypotheses,
and nothing more.

The ceremonial name which Sindok assumed at the time
of coronation was Sri Isana-Vikrama Dharmottungadeva. In
three inscriptions 3 , known to us only from later copies, his
coronation name is given as Vikramottungadeva, Vikramadhar-
motsaha, and Vijayadharmottunga. As regards his raka title,
an inscription of the month of VaiSakha in his first year calls
him rake Halu*, but from the month of Sravana of that
very year it is changed to rake Hino 5 . A stone inscription
of Tengaran 6 dated 857 or ^855 Saka (935 or 933 A. D.)
is said to be issued by rakryan Sri Mahamantrl pu Sindok sang
SriSanottungadcvavijaya together with rakryan Sri ParameSvarl
Sri Varddhani Kevi. It gives no royal title to Sindok, although
the name of the queen (paramesvarl) is added after his. This

1. T.BG., 1930, pp 182-3.

2. T. B.G , 1932, pp. 618-625 ; 1933, pp. 159 ff- 5 1935* PP- 4S6 ff.

3. O. J. O., Nos. XL1I, L. ; K.O., No. XXII.

4. O.J.O., No. XXXVIII. 5- O. J O., No. XXXVII.

6. O. J, O., No. XLV. The date is given as 857 aka. Krom
says : 'The date in the published edition is 835 but in our opinion
it should be 833." (Geschiedenis p. 206 ; 2nd Ed., p. 213). Evidently 835
apd 833 are slips for 935 and 933-

260 RISE OF EASTERN JAVA

can hardly be interpreted as indicating a loss of rank on
the part of Sin^ok. The whole thing is an anomaly and
is probably due to the mistake of the writer.

Sin<Jok ascended the throne in c. 929 A. D. and ruled for
nearly twenty years, his last-known date being 947 A.D. 1
A large number of inscriptions (nearly twenty) belonging to
this period are known to us, but they supply very little
historical information regarding his reign. If we are to judge
from the findspots of his inscriptions, his kingdom comprised
only the valley of the Brantas river, viz. the southern part of
Surabaya, the northern part of Kediri, and the whole of the
Malang district ; in other words, the territory between mounts
Wilis and Semeru.

It is indeed a small part of Java, and possibly his jurisdiction
extended far beyond this area. But we have no means
to ascertain either the extent or degree of his royal authority
beyond the narrow region indicated above, which must in
any case have formed the nucleus of his kingdom 1 .

The copper-plates attribute many pious foundations
to Sindok, and these are mostly Saiva in character. If we are
to judge from the monuments and records, Saivism was the
dominant religion with a little of Vaisnavism in the background.
No reference to Buddhism is found in the records, but the
composition, or rather a new edition, of the Buddhist tract
Sang hyang KamahSytaikan about this time indicates the
prevalence of Tantrik Buddhism in Java. The edition
is ascribed to Sri SambharasflrySvarana, who, in an Introduction,
preserved in only one copy, is associated with king Sindok
and is said to have edited the Subhati-tantra, which was one
of the most favourite texts studied by king Kj*tanagara.

I. But cf. f,n. 2, p. 261 below.

3, Rouffaer's hypothesis, that Sintfok exercised supremacy over
the southern part of Malay, Peninsula (B.K.I., Vol. 77, p. 114), is
based on very insufficient grounds.

SUVABNADVlPA 261

Sindok was succeeded by his daughter, who ruled as
queen Sri IfiSnatunggavijayS. The Calcutta prasasti of
Airlangga 1 , which is our only source of information about
the successors of Sindok, compares her to a swan and uses
epithets applicable to both. One of these epithets is 'Sugata-
paksa-sahft.' The meaning is obvious in the case of the swan,
but in the case of the queen it can only refer to her association
with the sect of Buddha (Sugata). The daughter of Sirujok,
thus appears to be a follower of Buddhism.

According to the Calcutta pra&asti of Airlangga,
lg&natunggavijay& was married to king Sri Lokapala, and the
issue of this marriage was king Sri Makutavamfiavardhana.
He is described as belonging to the family of IdSna, i.e. Sindok,
to whom he owed the throne, and not to the family of his father
Lokapala, who might, according to a custom prevalent in Bali,
have been adopted in his wife's family. As to Lokapala,
we possess three records issued by a king or kings of this
name, but it is difficult to identify any of them with the
son-in-law of Sindok/

1. The stone bearing this inscription, written partly in Sanskrit
and partly in Kavi, probably stood originally at Surabaya, and is now
in the Calcutta Museum. It was edited by Kern (V. G., Vol. VII, p.
85) for the Kavi portion cf. also O. J. O., No. LXII.

2. An inscription of a king Lokapala is preserved in a copy of
the Majapahit period. It is dated in 782 aka, but Krom argues from
internal evidence that the date is too early ( Geschiedenis, p. 215 ).
He suggests the date 872 aka (950 A.D ) and attributes the inscription
to king LokapSla, son-in-law of Sindok. In that case Sinctak must have
ceased to rule before 950 A.I). On the other hand we possess an
inscription of rake Hino ri Isana Vikrama i.e. Sincjok dated 971 A.D,
(O. J. O. LVI). But its genuineness may be doubted as it contains
awful mistakes even in the king's name.

Recently Stutterheim has deciphered the first portion of a record
of king Lokapala, the rest of which was edited a few years ago.
This portion contains a date, which is read by Stutterheim as 802 or,
possibly, 812 ( 88o or 890 A.D,), and the palaeography of the

262 RISE OF EASTERN JAVA

King Makutavaihgavardhana had a daughter Mahendradatta,
also known as Gunapriyadharmapatnl. She was married to
Udayana, who is not referred to as king, but is said to have
belonged to a renowned royal family. Udayana and
Mahendradatta, none of whom apparently enjoyed the royal
power, had a son named Airlangga. Airlangga was married
to the daughter of DharmavamSa, king of east Java
(parvayaviidhipati).

This short account preserved in the prasasti of Airlangga
raises certain difficulties. The question that immediately arises
is : who was this Dharmavaihsa ? His title, king of cast Java,
may indicate that he was one of several kings in that island.
But the Sanskrit expression might also mean an old (purva)
king of Java, or, as has been suggested by Krom, east Java
might have been used by way of contrast to the expansion of the
kingdom under Airlangga. In any case, as we have seen above,
Sindok was undoubtedly the ruler of east Java, and at the present
state of our knowledge, it is best to take DharmavamSa as belong-
ing to the same royal line. Possibly he was the successor of
MakutavamSavardhana. His name, which literally means,
'family of Dharma', may indicate that he belonged to a different
family 1 , but, as Krom suggests, he possibly married a daughter
of MakutavamSavardhana, perhaps the elder sister of

Mahendradatta.

inscription, according to him, is fully in keeping with this date.
Stutterheim also refers to another inscription of Lokapala, dated 778 S
(-8$6A.D.), found in Ratu Baka, and suggests that these two as well
as the Majapahit record refer to one and the same king Lokapala, who
would thus have ruled from A.D. 856 to 880 (or 890). (O.V. 1925,
PP- i7-3 ; 1926, p. 60. T.B.G. 1935, PP- 437 ff-) This would raise
the problem of the relation of this king with the kings of Alataram,
noted in the last chapter, and it would be impossible, in this case, to
identify king Lokapala with Sindok's son-in-law.

I. This is denied by Poerbatjaraka, who gives a different
explanation of the name (T. B. G., Vol. 70, PP- i?!-'^). According
to him, Dharmavarhsa means relationship with a royal family by
Carriage, something like prince-consort.

StJVARNADVlPA

As regards Mahcndradatta, alias Gunapriyadharmapatnl,
we learn from the prasasti of Airlangga that her name was
popular outside Java. Now a few inscriptions, discovered
at Bali, are issued by a married couple in which the
name of Gunapriyadharmapatnl is followed by that of her
husband Dharmodayanavarmadeva. It is not difficult to
recognise in the latter the full name of Udayana, the father
of Airlangga. Thus the parents of this monarch were ruling
in the island of Bali, although they bore no royal title. The
fact that the name of Gunapriyadharmapatnl is placed before
that of her husband shows that she was ruling in Bali in her
own right as the king's daughter, and Udayana, perhaps a
native of the island of Bali, was merely like prince-consort.
It would, therefore, follow that Bali was under the political
authority of Java, and Udayana and Mahcndradatta were
ruling the island on behalf of the Javanese king Dharma-
vamSa.

The Balinese records of Dharmodayana and Mahendradatta
fall between 989 and 1001 A.D., while the name of the former
alone appears in records dated 1011 and 1022 A.D. It
would thus appear that Mahendradattii died some time between
1001 and 1011 A.D., and Udayana alone ruled from that
time. 1

i. The tomb at Jalatuno!a, in the western corner of Penang-
gunggan, contains the name Udayana and the date 899. It was
generally regarded as indicating that Udayana was cremated there in
A,D. 977- This view cannot be upheld, as we have seen that Udayana
was alive up to the year 1022 A.D. Recently at the time of repair, the
old-Javanese word 'gempeng'* has been found at the end of the date ;
and it has further come to light that the name Udayana stands beneath
a series of figures in relief, a long with another name Mrgayavati. Now
the meaning of the word 'gempeng* is not definitely known, and
Mrgayavati was not the name of Udayana's queen. Stutterheim takes
gempeng as equivalent to gempung meaning vinata (destruction) and
holds that Udayana of Jalatunda should be regarded as a different
person who died in A D. 977. Krom, however, thinks that the two

264 RISE OP EASTERN JAVA

King DharmavamSa, whose name appears in the Calcutta
prasasti of Airlangga, as his father-in-law, ruled in Java
towards the close of the tenth and the beginning of the
eleventh century A.D. His name is associated with two
important books in old-Javanese language, viz., the law-book
called Siva-Sasana and the old-Javanese translation of
MahabhSrata. From these we learn that his full name was Sri
Dharmavam^a teguh Anantavikramottunggadeva.

As inscription, dated A.D. 991, found at Sendang Kamal
(near Magctan) in the Residency Mcdiun, 1 mentions Siva-
6asana and may thus be referred to the period of king
Dharmavamsa. The very next year an embassy was sent
from Java to China, and the following account of it is
preserved the history of the Sung dynasty. 2

"In the 12th month of the year 992, their king Maraja
sent an embassy consisting of a first, a second and an
assistant envoy, to go to court and bring tribute. The first
envoy said : "Now that China has a rightful master again,
our country comes to perform the duty of bringing tribute."

"The envoys were dressed in a similar way as those of
Persia who had brought tribute before. With the assistance
of an interpreter the envoy told that a Chinese from Kien-
khi, who was owner of many vessels and a great merchant,

Udayanas may be identical, and explains the discrepancy of date by
supposing that Udayana prepared his tomb long before his death.
(Geschiedenis 2 pp. 234-5). Stutterheim regards Udayana, husband of
Gunapriyadharmapatni, as an inhabitant of Bali (For Stutterheim 's views
cf. B. K. I., Vol. 85, 1929, pp. 479-483 ; Oudheden Van Hali, Vol. I, p. 16,
f.n. I). As regards the identity of Gunapriyadharmapatni and Sang Ajfla-
devl whose name appears in a record at Sembiran, dated 1016 A.D., the
question will be discussed later in connection with the history of Bali.
For the Balinese records cf. Ep. Balica 1 (1926) pp. 27-30.

1. O. J. O., No. LVII. This record is the oldest positive evidence
for the inclusion of Mediun in East Javanese kingdom

2. Groeneveldt Notes, pp. 17-18.

SUVARNADVlPA 265

had come many times to his country and that he now availed
himself of his guidance to come to court and bring tribute.
He also told that his king was called Aji Ma-ra-ya
( Maharaja ).

"The envoy was treated well, and remained for some time
in China. When he left, he was presented with large quantities
of gold and silk and also with good horses and military arms,
according to what he had asked."

This description clearly shows that Java was not in touch
with China for a long period. The embassy to China may,
therefore, be taken to indicate a new epoch in the foreign
policy of Java, when after a long life of isolation, she was
again renewing her intercourse with her neighbours. The
imposition of political supremacy over Bali, referred to above,
showr< that she had begun to pursue a policy of aggressive
imperialism. After the conquest of Bali she evidently turned
her attention to her neighbours, the Sailendras. The Javanese
envoy, sent to China in 992 A.D., related "that his country
was in enmity with San-fo-tsi and that they were always
fighting together". This shows that the struggle with the
Sailendras had probably begun a long time before 992 A.D.
But, as we have seen in a preceding chapter, the struggle
assumed a serious turn about this time, and about 990 A.D.
the kingdom of San-fo-tsi itself was invaded by Java. Indeed
that kingdom was reduced to such straits that its envoy
even sought the aid of the Chinese emperor against Java.
Possibly the Javanese embassy of 992 A.D. was sent to
counteract the activity of the enemy in that direction. In
any case there can be hardly any doubt that Java took the
offensive and gained great success at about 990 A.D. Thus
under king DharmavamSa the international glory and prestige
of Java were revived towards the close of the tenth
century A.D.

But the success of the king was shortlived. By 1003 A.D.
the Sailendra king had evidently hurled back the invasion of
34

266 RISE OF EASTERN JAVA

Java and was able to send an embassy to China without any
hindrance from tho latter.

Within four years of this a great catastrophe involved
Dharmavams*a and his kingdom in a common ruin. The exact
nature of this catastrophe is not known to us, but we learn
from tho Calcutta prasasti of Airlangga that in 1006 A.D.
Java was destroyed by a great catastrophe (pralaya) which
overwhelmed it like a sea. 'Then the flourishing capital city,
which was hitherto a seat of joy and merriment, was reduced
to ashes, and the great king met his end in 1007 A. D/

It has been suggested that the reference is to a natural
calamity like a volcanic eruption 1 . But the subsequent story
of Airlangga's flight, his concealment in a monastery, his long
and arduous fight with various enemies by means of which he
achieved the crowning glory of his life, vix. 9 the restoration of
Java, certainly indicates that the catastrophe was caused by
the invasion of a hostile king 2 .

Who this king was, it is difficult to say. The only passage
in Airlangga's prasasti which seems to throw a direct light on
this question reads as follows : "Haji Vuravnri an vijil sangke
LvarSm" i-e. "the king (of) Vuravari when he came out of
LvarSm." Now this might mean that the king of Vuravari
was the invader. But, then, we hardly know anything of
Vuravari, not even if it was in or outside Java. The whole
question then resolves itself into an attempt to identify
Vuravari, Lvar5m and two other place-names where Airlangga
had to carry on fights for the restoration of his kingdom.
Unfortunately, none of them has been satisfactorily identified.
Rouffaer has proposed to locate these places in the Malay
Peninsula 3 , but his arguments are far from convincing.
There is nothing to show that the places were not in Java.

1. Van Hinloopen Labberton in Djawa, Vol. I. (1921), pp. 191-195

2. This view is put forward by Krom (Geschiedenis, pp. 234-5).

3. According to Rouffaer Vuravari, which means clear water, is an
exact synonym of Ganggay, which, according to Sajarah Malayu (c.

SUVARNADVlPA 267

But whoever the invader may be, the complete success
which he attained in his object of destroying Java may indicate
that he was backed by the mighty power of the Sailendras.
This is the definite view of Krom who thinks that though the
Sailendras did not take any direct part in the struggle, they set
up a third power to destroy their powerful enemy. Apart
from the general state of hostility between the two, described
above, this conclusion gains some strength from the fact that
the restoration of Java was made possible only when the
Sailendra power was shattered by the invasion of the Colas.
Further, as Krom points out, it was a question of life and
death for a maritime and commercial power like the Sailendras
to keep down their powerful rival state which had lately evinced
a desire to become a sea-power, so that it might not again
endanger not only the sea-routes as it had lately done, but also
the Straits of Malacca which was the only means of communica-
tion between Sumatra and Malay Peninsula, the two essential
parts of the dominions of the Sailendras.

These arguments, no doubt, have great weight, but it is
difficult to explain why, under these circumstances, the
Sailendras should remain in the background. The two
countries had lately been engaged in open hostilities, and there
was nothing to prevent the Sailendras from openly joining the
fight against Java, or from taking advantage of the situation when
Java had gone down before her enemy. And yet the Sailendras
arc not referred to in Airlangga's praSasti as playing any part
cither during the invasion of Java by king of Vuravari or
during the long period of trouble that elapsed before Airlangga
restored his kingdom, unless, of course, we locate Vuravari

1612 A. D.), was in Malay Peninsula. Similarly Lvaram, meaning
sweet water, is the capital of the kingdom which was known as Langka,
later Lengkasuka, i.e. old Johor. Among the places where Airlangga
fought battles, Galu (jewel) is identified by him with Johor (Jauhar) and
Hasin with I-tsing's Mahasin i.e. Singapore. (B. K. I. Vol. 77, 1921, pp,
43 73, 90-92, 112-125,133). But many of these names occur in Java
^cf. Krom-Geschiedenis 2 pp. 241-2.)

268 RISE OF EASTERN JAVA

and the other places in Malay Peninsula, and regard them as
vassal states of the ^ailendras. The fact that the restoration
of Java took place at a time when the kingdom of the
Sailendras was itself in the grip of a foreign enemy may be a
pure coincidence. On the whole, it is difficult to maintain
with any degree of certainty that the Sailendras had anything
to do with the catastrophe which overwhelmed the kingdom
of Java.

But whoever the ememy may be, his efforts were eminently
successful, and the disruption of Java was complete. King
DharmavamSa died, and his palace and kingdom perished with
him. His young son-in-law, Airlangga, 1 then only sixteen
years old, took shelter in the forest, accompanied by only a
few faithful followers. Being evidently pursued by the enemy
they shut themselves up in a small monastery, clothed
themselves in bark of trees, and lived on food supplied by
monks and hermits. Three years passed in this way. Evidently
the partisans of Dharmavamsa came to know his whereabouts.
In 1010 some people, including eminent Brahmanas, met him
with a request to assume the royal authority. Evidently he
was then merely acclaimed as the legitimate king by the
partisans of Dharmavamsa, and it does not appear that he had
gained any real power and authority. In that portion of his
piwsasti which is written in Kavi language, it is said that the

i. The name is also spelt as Er-langga. Of late, there has
been some discussion about the meaning of the name Er-
langga. Rouffaer explained it as water-sipper, a symbolic
name meaning that the prince had sipped ( enemy ) waters
i. e. t became lords of the sea ( B. K. I. Vol. 77, 1921, p. 73 ) Stutterheim
takes Er-langga as the name of a place, in Kediri, which was given as
dowry by Dharmavamsa to his son-in-law in order to defray his expenses
in Java, So he takes Er-langga not as a proper personal name, but a
title like Dyah Balitung ( Prince of Balitung) (Feestbundel, Vol. II.
pp. 393-5)' According to Poerbatjaraka Er-langga means. 'He who
crosses the water 1 ( 'Er water langg= Sanskrit Langh = 'to cross. 1 ) As
we know for certain that Er-langga came from Bali, this meaning is very
appropriate ( Djawa, Vol. 10, 1930, p, 163 ).

SUVARNADVXPA 269

ceremony of his consecration by the reverend priests of
Buddhist, Saiva, and Brahmanic faith was held in 1019 A. D.
As it took place at Halu, he assumed the royal name of "rake
Halu Sri Lokesvara DharmavarhSa Airlangga Ananta-
Vikramottungadeva". After his consecration the king offered
worship to his great-great-grandfather who was buried at
ISanabajra, viz., king Sindok to whom, in the Sanskrit portion
of the inscription, Airlangga carried back his genealogy. We
learn from Nagrakrtiigama that Ifianabajra was situated a
little to the south of Pasuruhan. This identification makes
it certain that by 1019 A. D. Airlangga made himself
master of the territory in the neighbourhood of Pasuruhan.
The earliest record of Airlangga, 1 dated 1023 A. D., refers
to places on the Surabaya river, and thus his kingdom at this
time may be regarded as having extended on the sea-coast
from Surabaya to Pasuruhan with a belt of inland region
corresponding to it. It could not have been a very large
kingdom. Indeed it appears from the subsequent story of
Airlangga's expeditions that Java was at that time divided
into a large number of small independent states. Whether
this was the natural consequence of the destruction of the
central authority, or whether it was due to deliberate policy
of Java's foreign enemy in order to keep that land hopelessly
weak, it is difficult to say. It may be mentioned, however,
that Airlangga seems to have kept his hold on Bali all
along (See Bk. IV, Chap. V).

By 1028 A. D. Airlangga felt powerful enough to make a
bold bid for the lost kingdom. He had to fight with a
number of petty kings during the first four years. Some of
them submitted to his authority and those that refused to do
so were either killed or expelled. In 1029 a king Bhlsmapra-
bhava was defeated at Vuratan. During the two following
years a somewhat severe contest ensued with the king
Adham&panuda. Airlangga achieved a complete victory and

j, K.O., No. V,

270 RISE OP EASTERN JAVA

burnt his enemy's capital city. In 1032 Alrlangga defeated a
powerful queen of the south and returned with a large booty.
The same year he had to finally reckon with the king
of Vuravari, who was the cause of Java's calamity. As
already remarked, Vuravari was most probably a place in
Java itself ; in any case it is safe to presume that the fight
took place on the soil of Java. For, with powerful enemies
like king of Vengker still unsubdued, Airlangga could hardly
think of military expedition outside Java. 1 The inscriptions
tell us that the king of Vuravari perished. If he was really
a foreigner it may also mean that he was forced to leave
Java.

The king of Vengker, a small state in the modern
district of Madiun, with its capital at Setana, now remained
the only powerful foe of Airlangga. Already in 1030 A. D.
Airlangga had inflicted a defeat upon this enemy. Although
it was not of a decisive character, it forced Vijaya, king of
Vengker, to remain on the defensive and left Airlangga free
to reckon with his other powerful enemies. In 1035* in the
month of Bh&dra Airlangga led an expedition against Vengker
on a large scale, and gained a great victory. Two months
later Vijaya was imprisoned by his own troops and killed,
thanks to the diplomatic move of Airlangga, learnt from the
book of Visnugupta. With the fall of Vengker, the war of
restoration came to an end, and Airlangga became the undis-
puted master of Java.

With the expansion and solidarity of his dominions
Airlangga also changed his royal residence. An inscription,

1. We should presume on the same ground that Hasin, whose
king was defeated by Airlangga, was also in Java and not in Malay
Peninsula, as suggested by Rouffaer ( B. K. I., Vol. 77 (1921), pp.

73-75-)

2. The portion of the inscription, written in Kavi language,

gives the date as 1037. Possibly it is a mistake for 1035. Kern, however,
thinks that 1035, the date given in the Sanskrit portion, is a mistake
for 1037.

SUVABNADVlPA 271

dated 1031 A. D., 1 places it at Vuatan Mas, but from another
record, dated six years later 2 , we learn that it was removed
to Kahuripan. None of these two places has been identified
yet. The seal of the king was Garudamukha, an indication
that he regarded himself as an incarnation of Visnu.

During Airlangga's reign Java came into contact with
foreign lands. An inscription at Truneng 8 contains a passage
which has been taken to mean that he had overthrown his
enemies in foreign lands (paradvlpa paramandala). But the
text of this inscription has too many lacunae to be properly
understood, and perhaps the passage merely contains a
reference to his peaceful relation with foreign lands. In any
case there is no definite evidence that Airlangga ever undertook
any military expedition outside Java. Even his relation with
the Sailendras seems to be quite a friendly one. On the other
hand his records 4 contain a long list of foreign peoples who
used to come to Java for purposes of trade or other peaceful
pursuits of life. The list includes Kling, Singhala, Dravida,
Karnataka, Champa, and Kmir which may be easily identified
as Kalinga, Ceylon, Cola country, and Kanara in south India,
Annam, and Cambodge. Three other countries vix. Aryya,
Pandikira, and Remen are more difficult to identify satisfactorily.
The first possibly means North India as opposed to Dravida
country in the South, and Pandikira may be a combination of
Pandya and Kerala. Remen, which has been identified by
Krom with Pegu, may be the same as 'Ramin' or Ramni of
Arabic writers and thus a part of Sumatra. 6

1. O. J. O., No. LVIII The date is given here as 1021, but
Krom reads it as 1031 (Geschiedenis, p. 258) ; Cf. T. B. G., Vol. 59
( 1921 ), p. 423-

2. O. J. O., No. LXI.

3. O. J. O., No. LXIV.

4. O. J. O., Nos. LVIII, L1X, LXIV.

5. Krom Geschiedenis, p. 260, Ferrand Textes, Vol. I., p. 97 ;
p. 25. f. n. 2.

272 RISE OF EASTERN JAVA

The Kelagen inscription informs us that the Brantas river
burst its banks at Varingin Sapta (modern Vringin pitu) and
caused great havoc when Airlangga built a dam to stop it. 1
It is interesting to note that even irrigation works undertaken
in the nineteenth century have profited by this dam built by
Airlangga. The same inscription informs us that the work of
Airlangga caused great joy to the foreign merchants and
captains of ships who thronged the port of Hujung Galuh.
Now it is evident from the context that Hujung Galuh was
at the mouth of the Brantas river and was therefore either
Surabaya itself, or a former port in its immediate neighbour-
hood which played the same r6le as Surabaya docs now.
From another inscription 9 , which, though undated, may be
referred to the same period, we come to know of another
sea-port Kambang-putih at or near modern Tuban. All these
indicate that maritime trade and commerce flourished in Java
during the reign of Airlangga.

In the early records of Airlangga we come across the name
of a lady as the most important official next to the king.
Her full name is "rakryan mahamantri i Hino Sri Sangrama-
vijaya Dharmaprasadottungadevl." She was evidently
not the queen, for the queen at this period usually
assumed the title 'Sri ParameSvarl'. She has been regarded
as the daughter of Airlangga. She evidently held the high
position up to A. D. 1037. For while her name occurs with
full titles in an inscription dated A. D. 1037, we find another
person in the same position in the Pandangkrayan inscription 3
dated A. D. 1037, the Calcutta stone inscription dated 1041
A. D., and the Pamotan inscription dated A. D. 1042. 4 The
full name of the latter has, unfortunately, not been preserved.
But its first part is Sri Samaravijaya and it ended with

1. O. J. O.. No. LXI.

2. O. J. O., No. CXVIII.

3. O. V., 1915, p. 70 ; 1925, p. 20.

4. Unpublished, cf. Inv. No. 1827.

SUVARNADVIPA 273

'Uttungadeva', and so the person probably belonged to the
royal family. It may be mentioned here that Narottama, who
accompanied Airlangga in his flight in 1007 A. D., remained
his trusted official to the end, and his full title was rakryan
kanuruhan pu Dharmamurtti Narottama DanaSura. 1

According to the Calcutta inscription Airlangga established,
in 1041 A. D., a monastery at Pucangan, modern Penanggungan,
the place where he found a shelter in his dark days. According
to a Javanese tradition, Kili Suci, a nun belonging to the royal
family of Kahuripan, practised asceticism at this place.
Rouffaer concludes from this that this royal nun is no other
than the daughter of Airlangga, and the monastery was founded
for her sake 9 .

According to a later Javanese tradition, Airlangga himself
retired from the world in his old age and lived the life of an
ascetic (named rsi Gentayu). An edict 3 dated A. D. 1042, is
issued by Aji paduka mpungku sang pinakacatra ning bhuvana
who lived in the temple of Gandhakuti. This singular
combination of secular and spiritual titles perhaps points to a
monarch who adopted a religious life but still continued to
exercise the royal authority. The date of the record and the
tradition that king Airlangga took to an ascetic life seems to
indicate that the author of the record is no other than king
Airlangga himself. In that case Airlangga must have left the
world some time between the month of MargaSlrSa, 1042 A. D.,
the date of the Pamotan inscription, and the month of Magha
of the same year when the edict referred to above was issued.

An inscription* of a later king refers to a canal originally
dug by paduka mpungku bhatara Guru sang lumati ri Tlrtha,

1. O. J. O. f No. LXl, The reading Narottama jananasura',
in II 2-3, given here, is evidently a mistake for 'Narottama-Danasura',
which, according to Krom, can be clearly read on the stone.

2. Krom-Geschiedenis, p. 264.

3. O. J. O., No. LXI1I. The inscription is preserved in
a later copy.

4. Groeneveldt, Catalogus Batavia ( 1887 ), p. 376.
35

274 RISE OF EASTERN JAVA

and another later record 1 confirms a boon originally granted

in 1039 A. D. by Bhatara Guru with the seal of Garuda-

mukha. Now Garudamukha was the well-known seal of

Airlangga and thus the reference is apparently to the same

king who, after his ascetic life, was thus cremated at Tirtha.

Now we come across Tirtha as the name of a monastery near

Pavitra, in an inscription of Sindok. 8 The findspot of this

inscription, the names of places contained in it, and the

detailed account of the journey of king Hayam Wuruk as

given in Nagarakrtagama all indicate this place to be situated

in the eastern slope of Penanggungan. Now near this place

are found the remains of an old site, the bathing-place of

Belahan, which contains among other things a fine statue of

Visnu on Garuda. Rouffaer long ago made the suggestion

that Belahan was the burial place of Airlangga and that the

king himself is figured as Visnu. The identification of Tirtha

with Belahan, on independent grounds, lends a strong support

to this view. 8 The figure of Visnu is a beautiful piece of

sculpture, and according to Rouffaer's theory, we can see in

it the actual portrait of the famous king who passed such

an eventful life. We may also infer from it that the art of

sculpture flourished during the reign of Airlangga. That the

king was a patron of literature, too, appears clearly from the fact

that the famous old- Javanese kuvya, Arjunavivaha,* the first

book of its kind, was written under his patronage by poet

Kanva. This poet says at the end of his poem that he wished

to follow the king in his military expeditions. The book

was thus apparently written before 1035 A. D. when Airlangga

set out on his last military expedition.

1. O. J. O , No. LXX.

2. O. J. O., No. XLI.

3. T. B. G., Vol. 55 (1913), pp. 596 ff; Vol. 56, pp. 442-44 I
Vol. 65, pp. 222-5. Stutterheim, in the last named article, explains
Tirtha as a burial place, and not a proper name.

4. Published by Friederich in Verh. Bat. Gen., Vol. 23 (1850),
and by Poerbatjaraka in B. K. I., Vol. 82 (1926).

SUVARNADVlPA 275

With the adoption of an ascetic life, king Airlangga
passes from our view, and we do not know anything about the
last days of his life. There is no doubt that his career was one
of the most interesting in the history of Java. The various
phases of life through which he passed ever since he was
married, at the age of 16, mark him out as a striking
personality. He was indeed a hero, in the arts of war as well
as in those of peace.

Chapter HI.

THE KINGDOM OF KADIRI

Before his death Airlangga had divided his kingdom into
two parts and bestowed them upon his two sons. This partition
of the kingdom gave rise to two states in Eastern Java which
continued to divide the country for a pretty long time. It is,
no doubt, a matter of surprise, and of regret, that Airlangga,
who had experienced more than anybody else the evils of a
divided kingdom, and the aim and crowning success of whose
life was to undo the evils thereof by a reunion of the country,
should have himself sacrificed his life-work by such a fatal
measure. There must have been very strong reasons for
inducing him to this decision. According to Nagara-
krtftgama 1 it was out of pure affection that Airlangga crowned
both his sons as kings. An older document, an inscription
dated 1211 Saka ( = 1289 A.D.), throws a new light on this
question.* A learned Pandit named Bharada is said to have
divided Java into two parts, named Janggala and Pafijalu on
account of quarrel between two princes eager to fight. Bharada
is also referred to in Nagarakj* tagama as the person to whom
the work of division was entrusted, and in both cases Bharada
is said to have accomplished his task by means of Tantrik or
magical process of which he was a past master. There is no
doubt, therefore, that the inscription refers to the division of
Java by Airlangga. Now the reference to quarrel between
two princes, eager to fight, as the reason of the division,
seems to be significant. It is clear that two sons of Airlangga

1. Nag.Kr.68 : I.

2. The Sanskrit Inscription on the Image of Mahakobhya at
Simpang (Surabaya); Kern, V. G., Vol., VII, pp. 189 ff; cf, also
B. K. L, Vol. 78 ( 1922 ), pp. 426-462.

SUVARNADVlPA 277

claimed succession to the throne, and both felt powerful enough
to contest It by force. It seems that the aged father, unable
to reconcile them, and in order to avoid the inevitable civil war,
was compelled to take the only step which offered some
reasonable chance of a peaceful succession after his death. It
was not then a pure sentiment, but a stroke of dipolmacy which
dictated the action of the old monarch.

We have seen in the last chapter that a daughter of Airlangga
held the highest position in the state till 1037 A,D. She was
evidently the crown-princess, and legitimate heir to the throne
through her mother, the daughter of king DharmavamSa. But
she took to an ascetic life, and it disturbed the regular order
of succession. This was undoubtedly the main cause of the
dispute between the two sons of Airlangga by junior queens.
For, while the right of the eldest child by the chief queen to
succeed to the throne was not questioned by any, positive rules
and precedents were lacking for selection from among the
junior princes. Perhaps each of them was backed by a
powerful party in the court, and when the prospects of a dread-
ful civil war loomed large before the eyes of the aged king, he
cut the Gordian knot by dividing the kingdom among the two
claimants.

Thus arose the two kingdoms of PaSjalu and Janggala.
The boundary between these two kingdoms cannot be clearly
ascertained. According to Nagarakytagama, and the inscription
of the thirteenth century referred to above, the sage Bharada
fixed the boundary by means of magical water (Kumbha-
vajrodaka). These statements, together with other traditions
of a later date, convey the idea that from the northern coast
the sage flew in the air while water was flowing from his pot
all along the way, indicating thus the boundary between the
two kingdoms. Unfortunately, he could not complete his
aerial journey up to the southern coast, as he was stopped by
a tamarind tree at Palungan. There he stopped, and dug his
water pot beneath the ground. Evidently the boundary between
this spot and the southern coast was marked by other means.

278 THE KINGDOM OF KAI3IRI

Various opinions have been expressed on the nature and
meaning of this popular tradition, and attempts have been
made to form an idea of the boundary line on the basis of this
popular story 1 . It is not necessary for our present purpose
to enter into a detailed discussion on the subject. On the
whole it seems to be generally agreed, that PaSjalu comprised
the western half of the kingdom, including the modern districts
of Blitar, Kcdiri, and Madiun, while Janggala comprised the
eastern half including Malang, Pasuruhan, Rembang, and
Surabaya, excepting the south-western part of the last which
belonged to the former. How far to the west the authority of
PaSjalu extended, it is difficult to say, and it might well have
included at least a portion of central Java. The whole of the
eastern extremity of Java belonged no doubt to Janggala.

PaSjalu, the official name of the western kingdom, was soon
changed to Kadiri, and towards the close of the thirteenth
century it was called Gelanggelang. The capital of the kingdom
was, throughout, the city of Kadiri also called Daha. There
is no doubt that this place is now represented by the town of
Kediri* which has thus preserved the old name.

Nothing is known as to the name or position of the capital
of Janggala. It has been tentatively located at Bakong 8 on
the Porong river, at Sidukari*, or at Jedong 5 on the northern
slope of the Penanggungan hill. The probability, however,
is that Kahuripan, the capital of Airlangga, still continued to be

i. E.g. Bosch T. B. G., Vol. 58 (1919)-, PP- 4*9 ff J Stein
Callenfells O. V., 1916, p. 106. ; Rassers ( 'De Pandji roman/ pp.
135 ff., 229 ff, 299 ff ) ; Krom-Geschiedenis, pp. 269 ff.; Stutterheim (B.K.I.,
Vol. 89 (1932), pp. 101-105 ) regards Bayalangu as the boundary
between the two.

a. Formerly Daha used to be located at Madiun, but Chinese
annals and inscriptions have satisfactorily established the identity of
Daha and Kediri.

3. Not. Bat. Gen., 1864, p. 230.

4. Hageman-Indisch. Archief,, I, I. pp. 616 ff.

5. De Kopiist, I, p. 389.

SUVARNADVlPA 279

the capital of the eastern kingdom. 1 For it seems quite
reasonable to hold, that when the kingdom was partitioned
into two, the old capital with the territory in its neighbourhood
should form one of them. This seems to get some corrobora-
tion from the fact that in NagarakptSgama, two daughters of
the founder of the kingdom of Majapahit are referred to as
queen of Kahuripan and queen of Daha.

We possess very little information regarding the kingdom of
Janggala. The earliest inscription is a copperplate, dated 1053
A.D., issued by a king named Mapaiiji Alanjung Ahyes. But
this record is only known from a very corrupt copy of the
Majapahit period, and its authenticity may be doubted. 8

Next comes the Surabaya stone inscription of a king whose
full title is 'rake Halu pu Jurau (?) Sri Samarotsaha Karnna-
keana DharmavamSa Kirttisingha Jayantakatunggadcva. 8
The rake-title of the king is, the same as that of Airlangga, and
the seal-mark of the latter, viz. Garudamukha is also adopted
by the king. Further he uses the family name of Dharma-
vamla, which the kings of Kadiri never did. The contents of
the inscription relate to the use of some water-works.

The inscription contains a date but the figure for hundreds
is badly damaged. The other two figures are 8 and 2. Now
the remnants of the first figure indicate that it cannot be 8,
and our choice lies therefore between 782 and 982, But the
first is out of the question, if we consider the title of the king
and the form of the alphabet. We may thus reasonably
construe the date as 982 (=1060 A.D.).

With the exception of these two records, no other certain
document of the kingdom of Janggala has come down to us.
Indeed, it may be doubted if the kingdom of Janggala

1. This is the view of Krom. ( Geschiedenis, p. 275. ).

2. The record is not yet published (Krom Geschiedenis, 2
p. 282). It is now in the Surakarta Museum, cf. O. V,, 1928,
pp. 64,70.

3. Groeneveldt, Catalogus Batavia, (1887), P- 37

280 THE KINGDOM OF KADIRI

continued to exist for a long time. It is true that a queen
of Kadiri, of the twelfth century A. D. (see below, under
Kamelvara I), is said to have come from Janggala, but there is
no mention of any king or kingdom. On the whole, the available
evidence leads to the conclusion that the kingdom of Janggala
did not last long, and while a portion of it was annexed to
Kadiri, the remainder was probably ruled by independent or
semi-independent chiefs. About the end of the twelfth century
a new kingdom was established at Tumapel near Malang,
and although it pretended to represent the old Janggala
kingdom, the claim was probably based on no more solid
ground than the fact that Tumapel once formed a part of the
defunct Janggala kingdom. We find a large number of records
belonging to the twelfth century A.D., and all of them, with
hardly any exception, originate from the present district of
Kediri. It may, therefore, be safely presumed, that in the
twelfth century A.D. Kadiri was the principal kingdom in Java
and the centre of its culture and civilisation, and that to the
outside world it represented the kingdom of Java proper.

The Javanese embassy to China in 1109 A.D., the honour
shown by the Chinese emperor to the king of Java in 1129
and 1132 A.D. 1 , and the reference in Annamesc records 9
to merchant vessels of Java plying to Annamite ports in the
middle of the twelfth century A.D., all these probably refer
to Kadiri, though it is not impossible that reference is to the
kingdom of Janggala.

The first king of Kadiri whose name is known to us is
Sri Jayavara Digjaya with the titles Sastraprabhu and
Jayaprabhu. His stone inscription, dated A.D. 1104, has been
found at Sirahketing in Madiun 3 . Probably this Jayavar?a
is the same as Varsajaya under whose royal patronage the poet
Triguna wrote the famous old-Javanese poem, Krnayana*

1. Groeneveldt Notes, pp. 15-19-

2. Maspero Le Royaume du Champa (1928) p. 197.

3. O. J. O., No. LXVI.

4. T. B.C., Vol. 57 ( 1916), pp. 221, 515 ff.

SUVARNADVlPA 281

which later supplied the subject-matter of sculptures in the
temple of Panataran. One Varsajaya is also referred to in
the concluding stanza of Sumanasantaka by Monaguna 1 , but
as he is not mentioned as a king, it is doubtful if we have
to take this name also as that of king Jayavarsa of Kadiri.

From 1116 onwards, we come across a scries of records 9
referring to kings bearing exactly the same titles, but with
the first part written variously as BameSvara, ParameSvara
and Kame6vara. Poerbatjaraka has suggested that the name
is really Kame^vara, and the two other forms are due to wrong
reading of inscriptions 3 . On the other hand Krom says that
the two forms Bamesvara and Kamcfivara are clearly legible
on records. In view, however, of the identity of titles,
Krom agrees with Poerbatjaraka in referring these records
to one and the same king, whose name was probably
Kame^vara*. As a stone inscription of Brumbung 6 , dated
1115 A.D., gives all the titles, KameSvara must have ascended
the throne in or before that year.

The latest record of KameSvara I bears a date which is
usually interpreted as A.D. 1140 A.D. a This gives rise to a
difficulty inasmuch as there are two records of king Jayabhaya,
dated respectively in A.D. 1135 and 1136. Poerbatjaraka
has inferred from this that the two were contemporary kings
ruling in different parts of the kingdom 7 . This is, however,
not very likely, as their records arc found in the same part
of the country. Krom has shown good grounds for the belief
that the date, which has so far been read as 1140, is really
to be construed as A.D. 1130 s .

1. Brandes, Beschrijving der Handsch, Van der Tuuk Vol. 3
(1QI5) P. HO.

2. For these records, cf. T. B. G., Vol. 56 ( 1914 ) pp. 242-252.

3. T. B. G., Vol. 58 ( 1919 )> PP- 479-483.

4. Krom Geschiedenis, pp. 285-6.
5 O. V., 1915, PP. 68 ff.

6. O. J. O., No. LXIX. 7. T. B. G., Vol. 58 (1919), p. 488.

8. T. B. G., Vol. 59 ( 1921 ), pp. 419-424.
36

282 THE KINGDOM OF KAI3IRI

King Earned vara, whose reign thus covers the period
1115 to 1130 A^ D. had a grandiloquent title "Sri Maharaja
rake Sirikan Sri Kamevara SakalabhuvanatustikSrana
SarwSniv&ryyaviryya Parakrama Digjayottunggadeva. His
seal-mark is 'death's head' called Candrakapala. His inscrip-
tions record gifts of land, but supply very little historical
information. It is curious to note that the name of one of
his officials, rakryan Kanuruhan, the highest minister of
state in Kadiri, is given as Vaprake,4vara. The name of another
official "Sang Juru Pangjalu" reminds us of the official name
of the kingdom which occurs but twice in the records of the
Kadiri period.

The old-Javanese Kavya Smaradahana 1 by Dharmaya
refers to a king KanieSvara, who may be identified with the
king under discussion, if not with the later king of the same
name. He calls the country 'Yava-MadhyadeSa' surrounded
by ocean. While there is no doubt, therefore, that the whole
of Java is meant, it is not clear whether Madhyade.4a indicates
the position of Java in the middle of the Archipelago or the
location of the kingdom of Kamesvara in the middle of the
island with two other kingdoms on its east and west. It is
interesting to note that the poet has in this connection referred
to a tradition that the book of Kumara (Skanda or Karttikeya)
in Kashmir, was, by a curse of Siva, transformed into the
island of Java. While it no doubt refers to the prevalence
of Saivism, the shape of Java like an old Indian manuscript
may also be referred to, for immediately after this the poet
compares the island to an weapon called 'Lipung' which is
pointed at both the ends and thin in the middle, which serves
as the handle.

The poet describes the king as the incarnation of the god
Kama (Cupid), and his abode, the wonder of the world, is called
Dahana. Sri Isanadharma is referred to as the founder of

i, Poerbatjaraka Agastya, p. 35. T. B. G., Vol. 58, ( 1919 ),
pp. 461 ft.

SUVARNADVIPA 283

the family. Thus, like Airlangga himself, his descendants,
the kings of Kadiri, traced their ancestry to Sindok-lgSna.
KSmeSvara's queen is referred to as Sri Kirana, the daughter
of Vajadrava and the best of women in Janggala. As no
royal title is bestowed on Kirana's father, it may be presumed
that while the geographical name Janggala was still in use,
it did not form any separate kingdom but was part of Kadiri.
According to Poerbatjaraka, King KameSvara and queen Kirana
are the historical personages round whom the whole cycle of
PaSji-legends have been evolved (cf. Bk. V, Ch. IV.).

KameSvara was succeeded by his son Jayabhaya, one of
the few royal names that have lived in popular tradition in
Java. In the case of Jayabhaya, the explanation is perhaps
to be found in the fact that he was the patron of the famous
poem Bharatayuddha. Two of his records are dated in 1135 1
and 1136 a A. D., while a third record 3 has also been
doubtfully ascribed to him. These records give him the
title Sri Maharaja Sri DharmmeSvara Madhusudanavatara-
nindita Suhrtsingha Parakrama Digjayottungadeva. The
personal name of the king is given, in one case, as Sang
MapaSji Jayabhaya at the beginning, and in another case, as
JayabhayalaScana, at the end. The royal seal-mark is
Narasimha.

The poem Bharatayuddha, which was composed by Sedah
In 1157, eulogises king Jayabhaya in most flattering terms.
He is regarded as incarnation of Visnu, the undisputed
master of the whole of Java, against whom no other king can
dare to raise his arms. All the king's enemies bow down
before him, even the king of the golden land (Hetnabhupati).
The golden land may be taken to refer to SuvarnabhQmi

1. O.J. O.,No. LXVII.

2. O. J. O, f No. LXX. The date, read here as 1146,
should be corrected to 1136 . cf. T. B. G., Vol. 56 (1914), p. 243,.
Vol. 59 ( 1921 ), p. 420. Inv,, No, 2098.

3. O. V., 1916, p. 87, and Inv. f No. 2097.

284 THE KINGDOM OF KADIRI

(Malayasia) in a general sense, or to Sumatra, which is also
called Suvarnabhumi. But although a struggle with Sumatra
is not improbable, it would be risky to base any historical
conclusion on the extravagant eulogy of the court-poet.

The poet Sedah could not complete his poem Bharata-
yuddha, and the task was accomplished by Panuluh presumably
in the reign of Jayabhaya. For Panuluh also wrote a poem,
HarivamSa, in which he refers to king Jayabhaya as Sri
DharmeSvara Digjaya which, as we have seen above, formed
parts of his titles. A third work of the poet Panuluh, vix.,
GhatotkacaSraya refers to king Sri Jayakrta. He may thus
be regarded as the successor of Jayabhaya, but this docs not
tally with the tradition that the son of king Jayabhaya was
called Jayakatvang. 1 Nothing more is known about the
latter, but he is perhaps identical with Jayanagara Katvang
ing jagat to whom a poem is dedicated. 4 But as this
invokes at the beginning Sri KameSvara, Jayanagara was
most probably the son of king Kamesvara II. This is not,
however, necessarily the case, as Kama is often invoked
elsewhere, without any reference to king Kainesvara.

The difficulty is increased by the fact, that an inscription of
Kajunan, south-east of Kediri, dated 1160 A.D. 8 i. e. only
three years later than Bharatayuddha, gives the name of a
king which is neither Jayakrta nor Jayakatvang, but His
Majesty rake Sirikan Sri Sarwesvara Janarddhanavatara
Vijayagraja SamasinghanadSnivaryyaviryya Parakrama Dig-
jayottunggadeva. A homonymous royal name occurs in
another inscription found at Pikatan* whose date is lost.
The seal-mark is a flying figure.

We know hardly anything more than the name of the
next king, His Majesty rake hino Sri AryycSvara Madhusuda-
nSvatSrarijaya Muka. . .ryya Parakramottunggadeva, referred
to in an inscription of Jemekan, north of Pikatan, dated 1171

i. Van der Tuuk, Kawi-Bal. Nederl, Woordenb. II. ( 1899)
p. 179. 2. Cat. I, p. 1 80.

j. T. B. G., Vol. 56 ( 1914 ), PP.245 ff - <* Ibid. p. 246.

SUVAENADVlPA 285

A. D., 1 with the figure of a Ganea as its seal. An
inscription at Waleri, 8 near Blitar, whose date is illegible,
gives the same seal and the same royal name, with slight
changes, and may thus be referred to the same king.

A stone inscription, dated 1181 A. D. 3 found at Jaring,
near Blitar, furnishes the name of the king His Majesty Sri
Kroncaryyadipa Handabhuvanapiilaka Parakramanindita
Digjayottunggadeva Sri Gandra. The inscription refers to
a royal officer 'Senapati sarbajala' which evidently means
an admiral. The existence of this officer naturally leads to
the inference that the kingdom of Kadiri possessed a fleet.
This was evidently necessary for maintaining the hold of
the Javanese kingdom over neighbouring islands. As we
shall see, in less than half a century Java established her
authority over eastern archipelago, and so there is nothing
surprising in the fact that the kingdom of Kadiri should
possess a strong navy.

The next king KiimcSvara II is known from an inscription
dated 1185 A.D. 4 His full title is His Majesty Sri
Kamcfivara Trivikramfivatara Anivaryyaviryya Parakrama
Digjayottunggadeva. The record, found at Ceker, to the
south of Kediri, refers to the kingdom of Kadiri. It is only
partially legible and does not supply any valuable historical
information. It should be remembered, however, that king
Kamelvara, referred to in the epic Smaradahana, may also be
identified with this king rather than with Karne&vara I, and in
that case all that has been said above regarding KameSvara I,
on the basis of this work, should refer really to
KameSvara II. 8

1. Ibid. The inscription is now at Kediri ; cf. Inv., No. 1873.

2. O. V., 1917, p. 62.

3. O. J. O., No. LXXI. The reading Hantfabhuvanamalaka
is corrected to Handabhuvanapalaka by Krom (Geschiedenis, p. 293).

4. O. J. O., No. LXXI I.

5. This is the view of Krom. He thinks that the arguments
brought forward by Poerbatjaraka in favour of K^mesvara I are not

286 THE KINGDOM OF KAI)IRI

After KameSvara II we come across the name of king
Sjrngga whose dated records extend from 1194 to 1200 A. D. 1
The full name of the king is 'His Majesty Sri SarvveSvara
TrivikramSvatSrSnindita Spnggalaficana Digvijayottungadeva.
According to one of his records, dated A. D. 1194, * he firmly
established his power over the kingdom of Kadiri by driving
out somebody from the kraton of Katangkatang. Another
record of the king 8 , found at Panataran and dated 1197 A.D.,
refers to the temple of Palah, and we know from the detailed
account of journey of king Hay am Wuruk that it refers to the
group of temples at Panataran. The building, whose remains
we see there to-day, may be of a later date, but there is no
doubt that it was a sacred place containing shrines even so
early as the end of the twelfth century A.D. It is not, however,
absolutely certain that king Srngga was the immediate suc-
cessor of KSmeSvara II. A stone inscription,* found at Sapu
Angin, and dated in 1190 A.D., contains the name of Krtajaya
above the seal in the middle of the record. The text of the
record also refers to Krtajaya, but does not give him any royal

convincing ( cf. T. B. G., Vol., 58 ( 1919 ) PP- 47$ ff 5 Bosch, ibid,
pp. 491 ff ). Krom's arguments may be summed up as follows : The
tradition which closely associates the two poets Dharmaya and Tanakung
rather indicates the king to be Kamesvara II. In Tanakung's
Lubdhaka, the mention of Girindravarhsa seems to refer to the
dynasty of Singhasari, while his other work Vrttasaficaya, according
to its foreword, was written shortly before the fall of Kadiri. It may
thus be reasonably inferred that Vrttasaficaya was written shortly before
1222 A. D., the date of the fall of Kadiri, and Lubdhaka was
composed some time after that. Smaradahana, the work of an elder
contemporary of Tanakung, should, therefore be referred to the period
of Kamesvara II ( cf. Krom Geschiedenis, 2 pp. 298-9 and foot-notes ).

1. Five of his records are known. For the first three, which are
not of any historical importance, cf. (i) Not. Bat. Gen., 1883. (2) O. V.
1916, p. 8; ; (3) O. J. O., No. LXXVI. For the other two see the
next two foot-notes.

2. O. J. O., No. LXXIII. 3. O. J. O., No. LXXIV.
4. O. V., 1929. PP- 37 if,

SUVARNADVIPA 287

title. This Krtajaya may be identical with the last king of
the dynasty, and we must then presume that he issued the
inscription of 1190 A.D. while he was yet a crown-prince.
Otherwise we have to assume that he was a king in 1190 AJX
and thus preceded king Srngga.

It must further be noted in this connection that in addition
to the kings mentioned above we have references, in literary
works, to two others whose position in the Kadiri royal family
we are unable to determine. Reference has already been made
to Jayanagara whose full name or! Garbhe,4varar5ja pSduka
bhajara Jayanagara katvang ing jagatf occurs in a poetical
work which invokes at the beginning king KameSvara. 1 A
close relationship of this king to KsmeSvara, probably the
second king of that name, may thus be presumed, but cannot
be definitely proved. A manuscript of a poetical work
Pptuvijaya, based on Brahmanda-purana, has been found in
Bali*. It was composed by the poet Astaguna at the request
of the old king Prakrtivlrya. The language of the poem
indicates that it was written during the Kadiri-period. But
then we have no further information about the king
Prakrtivlrya.

The last king of the Kadiri dynasty was Krtajaya. The
Btone inscription of Wates-Kulen, 5 which is usually ascribed
to king Srngga really belongs to this king. It shows all the
characteristics of Kadiri grant and refers to the usual list of
administrative officials. A stone inscription dated 1216 AD. 4
contains the name of the king in NSgari letters and his seal
Garudamukha.

A short account of this king is found both in Nag. Kr.
(40 : 304) and Pararaton (p. 62). The former describes him
as a hero of irreproachable character and versed in philosophy
and scriptures. According to Pararaton, which refers to the
king as Dangdang Gendis, he demanded that the clergy should

i. Cat. I., p. 180. 2. o. V. 1921, p. 70.

3. O. J. O,, No. LXXVII. 4. O. V. 1929, p. 279.

288 THE KINGDOM OF KADI&I

make obeisance to him, and when they refused, showed them
some miracles to overawe them. But far from submitting to
the royal command, the clergy left him in a body and sought
refuge with the chief of TumapeL The latter attacked Kadiri,
and Kytajaya, being defeated, took to flight (1222 A.D.) and
sought refuge in a monastery. The details of the rise of
Tumapel will be described in the next chapter. It will suffice
here to say that with the defeat of Krtajaya perished the
kingdom of Kadiri. The author of Nag. Kr. (40 : 4) has paid
a well-deserved tribute to the king. "When the king of Kadiri
fell", says he, "a cry of anguish burst forth from the whole
land of Java".

Before, however, we leave the history of the Kadiri
dynasty, we must take note of the very interesting accounts
of Java which the Chinese accounts furnish us. These accounts
arc mainly derived from two sources, viz., the History of the
Sung dynasty (960-1279 A.D.) and the Chu-fan-chi of
Chau Ju-kua. The agreement of the two accounts leaves
hardly any doubt that they both refer more or less to the
same period, and from what has been said above regarding
the date of Chau Ju-kua 1 , we may easily assume the state of
things described by him to be true of the period 1175-1225 A.D.,
i&., the half -century preceding the fall of Kadiri.

The general political condition of Java, as described
by Chau Ju-kua 2 may only be followed in broad outlines.
It appears there were three political powers exercising
authority over the different parts of the island. The most
powerful kingdom, comprising the greater part of the island,
is named Sho-po whose dependencies, both in and outside
Java, numbered fifteen. The western part of the island
named Sin-to (=Sunda) (70) was a dependency of San-fo-tsi (162)
as stated before. The third kingdom is named Su-ki-tan (82),

1. See above, p. 193.

2. Chau Ju-kua, pp. 75-85, 62, 70. The figures within bracket
in the following paragraphs refer to pages of this work.

SUVARNADVIPA 289

It is said to be "a branch of the Sho-po country," but there
is no doubt from the detailed account that it formed a separate
state under its own king, and its currency, products, and
manners and customs differed to a certain extent from Sho-po.

The exact location of Su-ki-tan has not been an easy
matter, and various conjectures have been made 1 . Chau Ju-kua
says that "to the west it borders on Sin-to, to the cast it adjoins
Ta-pau". Later on, he adds : "The country of Ta-pan connects
to the east with Great Sho-po, it is (also) called Jung-ya-lu".

Jung-ya-lu has been taken as the Chinese equivalent of
Janggala, though Krom suggests the possibility of its
identification with the port Hujung Galuh. But although
Chau Ju-kua implies in the passage quoted above that Ta-pan
is the same as Jung-ya-lu, he contradicts himself when he
names both these states separately as dependencies of Sho-po.

Leaving out this identification, the natural and obvious
course is to identify Ta-pan with Tuban. Su-ki-tan may then
be located in central Java, along the northern coast, between
Pekalongan and Samarang, while Ta-pan would correspond
to the region between Rembang and Surabaya.

It is no doubt tempting to see in the two kingdoms of
the Chinese author the famous kingdoms of Kadiri and
Janggala, the handiwork of Airlangga, and indeed Rouffaer
has worked out this hypothesis in some detail. But, then,
as Su-ki-tan was decidedly to the west of Sho-po, we have
rather to identify the latter with Janggala, and the former
with Kadiri. But from all that has been said above, Kadiri
appears to have been the most powerful kingdom in Java,
and Sho-po has perhaps been rightly identified by all scholars
with this kingdom. An attempt may be made to reconcile
these two views by supposing that Janggala comprised both
the eastern and northern coast of Java, and the latter alone
is referred to by the Chinese authors, under the name Su-ki-tan.

i. Rouffaer B. K. 1., Vol. 77 (1921), pp. 136 ff. Schrieke
T. B. G., Vol. 65 ( 1925 ), p. 126. Krom Geschiedenis 8 , pp. 3o8ff.
37

290 THE KINGDOM OF KADIRI

Rouffaer has also pointed out in support of this view that
Sukitan is used in old- Javanese as equivalent to Janggala 1 .

Be that as it may, we may proceed with the assumption that
Sho-po, equivalent to Kadiri, denoted the most powerful king-
dom in Java, with nearly the whole of the island, except Su-ki-
tan and Sin-to, subordinate to it. It is difficult to identify the
states which the Chinese author mentions to as its dependencies.
We may only refer to the tentative suggestions of Rouffaer *
1. Pai-hua-yuan (=Pacitan) ; 2. Ma-tung (=Medang);
3. Ta-pan (=Tumapel ) (but as said above it is most likely
Tuban ) ; 4. Hi-ning (=Dicng), 5. Jung ya-lu (= Janggala ).

The most interesting part of the Chinese account is that
which refers to the oversea dominions of Sho-po (83-84).
Among its fifteen dependencies, eight are said to be situated
on islands. According to Chan Ju-kua "each of them has its
own chief and they have vessels plying between them" (84).
The Chinese author describes the inhabitants of these islands
as barbarous. "The natives (of these countries) arc strong
fellows, but savage and of a dark bronze colour. They wrap
( a cloth round ) their limbs and tattoo their bodies. They cut
their hair and go barefooted. They use no vessels in eating
or drinking ; in their stead they bind leaves together which arc
thrown away when the meal is finished.

"As a standard of exchange the people used only pecks
and pints of Sago. They do not know either how to write or
how to count "(84).

Although it is difficult to identify the islands individually
it is almost certain that they refer to the eastern isles of the
Archipelago. Rouffaer has tentatively suggested the following
identifications. 8

1. B, K. I., Vol. 77 ( 1921 ), p. 136.

2. B. K. I., Vol. 77 ( 1921 ), pp. 137-8.

3. Ibid. Rouffaer takes Ping-ya-i, and Wu-nu-ku as two
states instead of Ping-ya, I-wu, and Nu-ku as done by Hirth and

SUVAENADVlPA 291

6. Timg-ki (=New Guinea ) ; 7. Ta-kang (=Sumbawa or
Flores); 8. Huang-ma-chu (= South-west New Guinea);
9. Niu-lun (=Gorong) ; 10. Ti-wu (=Timor ); 11. Ping-ya-i
(=Banggai, south-east of Celebes ) ; 12. Wu-nu-ku (=Ternate)
13. Ma-li (=Bali) ; 14. Tan-jung-wu-lo ( = S.W. Borneo). It is
only fair to add that excepting the last two, the identifications
are purely conjectural. About these two, Bali and Borneo, Chau
Ju-kua adds that they "are rather more extensive than the
others ; they raise large numbers of horses for military service
and they have a slight knowledge of writing and counting/'
It is thus quite clear that Java had begun to exercise
political domination over Bali, Borneo, and the savage and
semi-savage people of numerous other islands of the east.
Kadiri had thus already laid the foundation upon which
ultimately Majapahit built the imperial structure of vast
dimensions.

Chau Ju-kua has also supplied much interesting information
regarding the manners and customs of the people and the
system of public administration. As we have had occasion
to note above, the Kadiri period witnessed a high degree of
development both in art and literature. All these will bo
discussed in detail in later chapters. On the whole the Kadiri
period is one of the most remarkable in the whole history of
Java. It saw the beginnings of the Javanese empire, and
witnessed a remarkable outburst of intellectual activity. It is
a prominent landmark in the history of Javanese culture.

Rockhill. For the identification of the Chinese names cf, in addition to
the article cited above, "De eerste Schipvaart der Nederlanders
naar' Oost-Indie ( 1925 ) by Rouffaer and Ijzerman, Vol. II. p. 410.

Chapter IV

THE DYNASTY OF SINGHASARI

Like many other founders of royal families, the life of
Angrok, who established a new kingdom in Singhasari,
has been the subject of many popular legends. These have been
focussed in the famous work Pararaton which gives a long
and romantic account of Angrok from the time of his birth.
Bereft of supernatural elements, which make him an offspring
or incarnation of Brahma, Visnu, and Siva, Angrok is
represented in these legends as the son of a peasant at Pangkur,
who spent his early life in highway robbery till he was taken
in the service of Tunggul Ametung, the governor of Tumapel.
Angrok assassinated his master, married his widow,
Queen Dedes, and made himself ruler of the territory to the
east of Mount Kavi.

The establishment of this new power soon brought Angrok
into conflict with Krtajaya, king of Kadiri, whose name is given
in Pararaton as Dangdang Gendis, evidently the personal
name as opposed to the coronation name. Fortune again
smiled on Angrok. As we have seen above, king Krtajaya
was involved in a quarrel with the clergy and Angrok took
advantage of this to declare himself openly as king. He took
the name 'Rajasa' and probably also *Amurvvabhumi n .

The Nagarakjtagama also refers to Sri Ranggah Rajasa,
son of Girlndra, who ruled over the great populous and
fertile kingdom lying to the cast of Kavi with Kutaraja
(later called Singhasari) as capital. This poem also mentions
a date, the year 1182 A.D. But in view of the great interval
between this and 1222 A.D., the date of the fall of Kadiri,

j. Par,, p. 62, Krom Geschiedenis, pp. 307-311.

SUVARNADVlPA 293

1182 A.D. should rather be taken as the date of Angrok's birth
than that of his coronation. 1

A fight between the kingdoms of Kadiri and Tumapel
(Singhasari) became inevitable. Rsjasa, evidently still helped
by the clergy of Kadiri, declared war against his enemy. A
decisive battle took place at Ganter in 1222 A.D. After a
long and bloody encounter Krtajaya's brother and commander-
in-chief Mahisa Walungan died in the battlefield, and the army,
bereft of its leader, took to flight. The rest of Kptajaya's
army was again defeated near Kadiri. Krtajaya fled from the
battlefield of Ganter with a few followers and was heard no
more. Kadiri was henceforth included within the kingdom
of Rajasa and probably placed in charge of a member of the
late royal family. Jayasabha was the name of the first
governor. He was followed in 1258 by Sastrajaya. 8

Rajasa thus united the whole of Eastern Java under his
authority. The new kingdom was at first called Tumapel.
This name occurs in an official record of 1294 A. D. Gradually
the kingdom was called after its capital Singhasari, a name
which replaced the old one Kutar&ja. According to the official
version Rajasa re-united the two kingdoms of Janggala and
Kadiri. Whatever we may think of this, there is no doubt
that with the foundation of Singhasari, we enter on a new
phase of Javanese history. The downfall of the dynasty that
traced its descent from the royal house of Matarfim finally
snapped the connecting link with the old traditions and the
history of central Java. Therewith the old Hindu culture and
civilisation rapidly recedes into the background and more
and more a purely Javanese element takes its place.

Rajasa restored peace in the country, but of the authentic
events in his reign we know practically nothing. The
Pararaton gives only a somewhat detailed account of his death.
We are told that prince Anengah, alias AnOsapati, the son
of queen Dedes by her first husband, noticed the difference

I. Nag, Kr.. 40 : 1-3. 2. Par., p. 63. Nag. Kr., 40 : 3 44 : *i

294 THE DYNASTY OF SINQHASlRI

in the king's attitude towards him and his other brothers and
sisters. On enquiry he learnt from his mother that he was
really the son of the former king who was killed by Rajasa.
He, therefore, employed a Pangalasan (probably a high official)
to murder the king, and as soon as the deed was done,
he himself killed the assassin, as if to revenge the death of
the king.

The year of Rajasa's death is given as A.D. 1227 in
NagarakilSgarna, and as 1247 in Pararaton. The earlier date
is to be preferred, in view of the greater authenticity of the
source, and in view of some details given in Pararaton 1 .
Rajasa had four children by queen Dedes, the eldest of whom
was Mahisa Wong Ateleng. By a second wife he had four
more children the eldest of whom was Panji Tohjaya. The
king was buried in a Saiva and a Buddhist Temple at
Kagenengan. The place was visited by Hayam Wuruk and
the temples are described in Nagarakrtagama (37). The place
was to the south of Singhasari, but its exact location
cannot be determined. The Saiva temple in which the king
was represented as Siva is praised for its beauty, but the
Buddhist temple was in ruins. Both have now disappeared.
The queen Dedes was perhaps more fortunate. The famous
figure of Prajiiaparamita, found at Singhasari and now
preserved at Leyden, is locally known as 'putri Dedes'.
Krom suggests on this ground that it might be a representation
of the famous queen Dedes.

AnQsapati (Anusanatha, according to Nag. Kr.) who is
officially regarded simply as the eldest son of Rajasa, succeeded
the latter. He maintained his hold on the whole kingdom
and died in 1248 *. According to Pararaton he was killed
by his half-brother Tohjaya while watching a cock-fight and
thus atoned for the foul crime by which he came to the throne.
The king was cremated in the famous Candi Kidal to the

I. O. V. 1920, pp. 107-110. Krom Geschiedenis, pp. 314-5.
3. Pararaton gives the date wrongly as 1249.

SUVARNADVIPA 295

south-east of Malang, which once contained the Siva figure
portraying the king's feature 1 .

King Tohjaya ruled only for a few months before he met
the tragic end which had over taken hispredecessors. Here,
again, Pararaton gives us a long and romantic story of his
death. The king had two nephews, Rangga Wuni, the son of
Amlsanatha, and Mahlsa Campaka, the son of Mahlsa Wong
Ateleng, referred to above. At first the king liked them
very much, but his minister warned him of the danger of
keeping them alive. The king, thereupon, sent for a man
called Lembu Ampal, and ordered him to kill the two young
princes. The royal priest who overheard the king, warned
the princes who immediately took to flight and concealed
themselves in the house of one PaSji Patipati. The king,
foiled of his victims, accused Lembu Ampal of treachery,
and the latter, seeing his life in danger, took to flight. By
chance, he took shelter in the house of Patipati, and having met
the princes there, he made a common cause with them by a
solemn oath. From his place of concealment Lembu Ampal
succeeded, by various manoeuvres, to create discontent and
disaffection against the king and to incite in particular Rajasa
and Sinelir, two bodies of royal guards 4 against their master.

1. F. M. Schnitger has identified this figure with a 6iva image
in the Colonial Museum at Amsterdam ( B. K. I., Vol. 89 (i93 2 )> PP-
123-128 ). Poerbatjaraka identified it with a Siva image in Cantfi Kidal
cf. 'Agastya' p. 88.

2. Rajasa and Sinelier are the two groups who evidently played
the principal part in the revolution. Who they were cannot be exactly
determined. Krom's idea that they were body-guards of the king,
seems to be the most acceptable ( Krom-Geschiedenis pp. 319-20,
where other views are discussed). The trick by which Lembu Ampal
succeeded in raising the guards against the king is ingenious.
He secretly murdered at night a member of one group, and then
a few days later a member of another group. This led to a free
fight between the two who accused each other of the foul crime.
The king intervened, but when he failed to pacify the two groups, he

296 THE DYNASTY OF SINGHASlRI

When the preliminaries were ready, he organised one evening
a mass attack against the palace. The king took to flight,
but was attacked 011 all sides by the enemy and died after
he had reached Katang Lumbang 1 . He was cremated at this
place, which according to Nag. Kr., was in Pasuruhan.

Tohjaya was succeeded by Rangga Wnni, who ^ascended
the throne in 1248 A.D. a under the name Sri Jaya
Visnuvardhana. He also bore the titles 'Sakalakalanakula
madhumarddhana kamaleksana', and 'mapanji SminingratA
The copperplate of the king bears the expression "Svapita-
raahSstavan&bhinnSSrantalokapalaka". This refers to the
grandfather of the king, rix. Rajasa, and not to Visnuvardhana
himself, as having united the kingdom of Java, as has wrongly
been suggested by the wrong interpretation of a passage
in another inscription 3 .

Mahlsa Campaka, the cousin of the king, and his companion
in the dark days of sorrow and misery, shared the kingdom
with the latter. He took the title 'ratu angabhaya' and the
coronation name 'Narasinghamurtti'. The title is explained
in other records as a 'subordinate king', and thus shows that
although the bearer had royal title, he was not the first person
in the kingdom. Perhaps like the two kings in Siam, one
on ]y } i n this case, of course, Visnuvardhana exercised real

ordered their leaders to be killed. Thus both the groups were angry
with the king and Lembu Ampal cleverly utilised the situation by
bringing them both over to the side of the princes.

1. The account of Tohjaya 's death is given on the authority of
Stutterheim and based on a new copy of Pararaton. (B. K. I. Vol. 89,
pp. 283-287). It differs from that given by Krom (Geschiedenis, 2

p. 3".)

2. This date occurs in an inscription (O, V. 1918, p. 169). It
proves that the dates given in Pararaton viz. 1249 A. D. for the death
of Anusapati, and 1249-50 for the reign of Tohjaya, are all wrong.

3. Versl, Med. Kon. Akad. V. Wet. Afd. Lett. 5 : 2 (1917), pp.
315-7. Poerbatjaraka restored the true meaning in B, K, I., Vol. 78
(1922), pp. 440 &

SUVARNADVlPA 297

authority while the other enjoyed the honour and dignity of a
king.

The only political event of the reign of Visnuvardhana
known to us is the destruction of a rebel chief Linggapati
and his stronghold, Mahibit, near modern Terung, on the
northern bank of the Brantas, not far from the later city of
Majapahit 1 . The king made a strong fortification in Canggu,
a strategic point on the Brantas river, near modern
Pelabuhan. This place came to be of great importance after
the foundation of Majapahit, about 20 miles to its south.
It may be that the foundation of Canggu led to the
determination of the site of Majapahit.

Visnuvardhana died at Mandaragiri in 1268 A.D.,* the
first and the only king of Singhasari to die a natural death. He
was represented as Siva at Waleri and as Buddha at Jajaghu.
At Waleri (modern Meleri near Blitar) only a few decorated
stones remain of the building. The other monument, at Jajaghu,
is now known as Candi Jago, a famous monument, in a fair
state of preservation, to the east of Malang.

Kftanagara, the son and successor of Visnuvardhana, had
already been anointed king by his father in 1254 A.D. 8 and
he issued a copperplate under the auspices of his father, in
1266 A.D.* In another partly legible record dated 1256 A.D.
only the titles of Kftanagara, no * those of Visnuvardhana can
be traced. 5 Since 1268 A.D. Kjtanagara ruled alone. He
assumed pompous titles which vary in his different records.
In his record of 1266 A.D. he is called "Sri Lokavijaya
Praastajagadisvaranindita parakramanivaryyaviryyalangha-

1. Nag. Kr., 41 : 2 ; 1'ar., p. 77. The location of Mahibit is
known from Kidung Sunda ( B. K. I., Vol 83. pp. 135^.)

2. The date is given in Nag. Kr., (41-4), Par. gives the date
as 1272, but as a record, dated 1269 A. D. gives the name of
Krtanagara alone as the reigning king, the earlier date is accepted.

3. Nag. Kr., 41 : 3.

4. Rapp. Oudh. Comm , 1911, pp. 117-123.

5. O. V., 1916, pp. 86 ff.

296 THE DYNASTY OF SINGHASARI

niya'. The titles in the record of 1269 A.D. 1 are "Sri Sakala-
jagatnathega Narasinghamarttyaninditaparakrama aesarajanya-

cudamani arpitacaranaravinda 6okasantapitasujanahrdayam-

buj&varodhana-svabhava." The title Narasinghamurtti, assumed
by the king after the death of his uncle and father's co-sovereign
Mahla Campaka 9 , shows that that post of ratu angabhaya no
longer existed and was merged in the king.

The reign of Krtanagara wa3 an eventful one both at home
and in foreign politics. After a long interval Java entered into
political relations with the neighbouring lands. A military
expedition was sent to Bali in 1284 A.D. to re-establish the
supremacy of Java over that island, and the king of Bali was
brought a prisoner before Krtanagara. The success over Bali
was evidently a short-lived one for it soon became independent
and had to be subdued again in the Majapahit period.

The expedition against Bali was evidently the result of a
deliberate imperial policy of expansion. The Nag. Kr. tells
us that the authority of the king was established over Pahang,
Malayu, Gurun, Bakulapura, Sunda, and Madhura.

Malayu in this list undoubtedly denotes the kingdom of
that name in Sumatra, now called Jambi. We have already seen
that it formed an independent kingdom till it was conquered
by Srlvijaya, and formed a part of it since seventh century A.D.
At the time when Nag. Kr. was composed Malayu denoted the
whole of Sumatra. But in Krtanagara's time it evidently
meant only the kingdom of Jambi. Pararaton refers to a
military expedition against Malayu, but totally ignores its good
results and only attributes to this unwise step the downfall of
Kjtanagara. But we have reasons to believe that the expedition
which left Tuban on ships in 1275 A.D. established the political
authority of Java in the very heart of Sumatra, and thus paved

1. O.J. O,, No. LXXIX.

2. Mah!a Campaka died soon after his royal cousin (Nag. Kr.
41 : 4 ) and was buried at Kumitir ( Kumeper ) ( Par., p, 77. ).

SUVAKNADVlPA 299

the way for the final conquest of that land. An inscription 1
on the pedestal of an image, found at Padang Roco near Sungai
Lansat in the Batanghari district in Jambi, tells us that in the
year 1286 an image of AmoghapaSa with his thirty followers
was brought from Java (bhurni Java) to Suvarnabhumi and set
up at DharmaSraya by four high officials at the command of
His Majesty Maharajadhiraja Sri Krtanagara Vikrama
Dharmottunggadeva. The image was worshipped by all the
subjects in Malayu Brahmana Ksatriya, VaiSya and Sudra
and above all by His Majesty the king Srlmat Tribhuvana-
raja Maulivarmadeva, The assumption of the superior title
by Krtanagara as against the simple royal title of Maulivarma-
deva, and reference to the people of Malayu as subjects, leave
no doubt that in 1286 A.D. the kingdom of Malayu, which,
according to the findspot of this inscription, extended far into
the interior of Sumatra, formed a vassal state of Java. It was
a great achievement and may be regarded as the crowning
glory of Krtanagara. He established a Javanese military
outpost in Sumatra, from which the authority of his land
ultimately penetrated into the farthest corners of that country.

Among the other conquests of Kj-tanagara mentioned in
Nag. Kr., Pahang, which in Majapahit period was used as the
collective name for the Javanese possessions in Malay Peninsula,
probably stands only for the district of that name in the
Peninsula. Similarly Bakulapura, which ultimately denoted the
whole of Borneo, is probably used here for the south-western
corner of that island. Gurun, probably Gorong or Goram,
means the eastern regions. Thus even according to a restricted
interpretation of Ng. Kr. we may credit Krtanagara with having
established his political authority in Jambi in Sumatra, parts
of Borneo and Malay Peninsula, Bali, Sunda, and Madura.
Thus under Krtanagara Java rose to be the leading power in
the Archipelago. The very fact that the Sailendras (or their

i. Versl. Med. Kon. Akad, V. Wet. Afd, Lett. 5 : 2(1917),
pp. 306-339.

300 THE DYNASTY OF SINGHASlEI

successors) could neither prevent Java from obtaining a secure
footing in the heart of Sumatra, nor remove her from the
position so obtained, shows that the sun of their glory had set
and a new power was gradually taking their place.

It is perhaps not altogether unconnected with the imperial
policy of Java that we find about this time a princess of that
island, named Tapasi, married to Jayashhhavarman IV, king of
Champa (1287-1308 A.D.) 1 At that time Champa had after
an arduous struggle delivered herself from the yoke of Kublai
Khan, the dreaded Mongol ruler of China. Possibly the alliance
between Java and Champa was the result of a common enmity
to the Mongol emperor. For the latter had, as usual, invited
the king of Java to come in person to the imperial court and
pay homage to the Mongol emperor (1281 A.D.). Krtanagara
avoided the task on one pretext or another till the crisis came
in 1289. Unable to bear any longer with the importunate and
pressing invitation to humiliate himself in the imperial court,
Kytanagara sent back the Chinese ambassador after mutilating
his face. It was a defiant challenge and Kublai did not fail
to take it up. He organised an expedition against Java, but
before it could reach that island an internal revolution had
removed Kj-tanagara from this world.

For, inspite of the brilliant success of his foreign and
imperial policy, Krtanagara failed miserably in his internal
administration. Pararaton draws a very unfavourable picture
of the king and represents him as always busy with eating
and drinking, without any care for administrative business.
This is undoubtedly too exaggerated a picture to be regarded
seriously. But that the internal condition of Java was far from
satisfactory appears from reference to frequent revolutions.
In 1270 A.D, the king had to put down the rebellion of one
Cayaraja (or Bhayaraja) who was evidently powerful enough
to assume the royal title. Ten years later he had to suppress
another rebellion, headed by one Mahisa Rangkah.

I. R. C. Majumdar ChampS, Part II, p. 220.

SUVARNADVlPA 301

But the final blow was given by the governor of Kadiri.
The details supplied by Pararaton attribute the debacle mainly
to the wrong choice of his officers by the king. His first
minister Mpu Raganatha served him well and exerted himself
for the welfare of the state. But the king not having paid any
heed to his advice, he threw up his office in disgust and took
up a humbler job, the post of adhyaksa at Tumapel (SinghasSri).
The king now appointed Kebo Tengah Apaiiji Aragani 1 as
his minister. The new minister's only care was to serve the
king with good dishes and wine. Another capricious act of the
king was to raise a very low man Banak Wide to a high position
in court under the name Arya Viraraja. What is worse still,
when this man proved to be untrustworthy, the king appointed
him to be governor of Sungeneb in east Madura !

According to Pararaton, Viraraja and Ar&gani were the evil
geniuses of the king. Aragani was instrumental in sending the
expedition to Malayu, thus denuding Java of most of its troops.
Viraraja saw the opportunity and entered into a treasonable
correspondence with his friend Jayakatvang, the governor of
Kadiri since 1271, who longed for an opportunity to secure the
throne by any means. At the instigation of Viraraja, Jaya-
katvang undertook the perilous venture. He sent a small part
of his army towards Singhasari by the northern route and it
advanced with music and banners. King Kptanagara, who all
this while was doing nothing but drinking wine, would not at
first believe of the revolt of Jayakatvang, whom he regarded as
favourably disposed towards him. But when at last the sight
of the wounded men convinced him of the reality of the
situation, he sent all the available troops against Jayakatvang's
army in the north. The royal army was commanded by two
sons-in-law of the king. One was prince Nararyya SanggrSma-
vijaya, better known as prince Vijaya, the son of Lembu Tal
and the grandson of ratu Angabhaya Narasingha (i.e. Mahlsa

I. Kebo Tengah and Apafiji Aragani may be taken also as two
different persons as stated in Paftji Vijayakrama. (Mid. Jav.
Trad, p. 48)

302 THE DYNASTY OF SINGHASlRI

Campaka). The other was Arddharrtja, the son of Jayakatvang
himself. The royal army obtained a victory and drove back
the rebel troops in the north. In the meantime, however,
another larger and better equipped army from Kadiri advanced
stealthily along the southern route and reached SinghasSri
without any opposition. They stormed the palace and, accord-
ing to Pararaton, found the king and his minister drinking
wine. Kebo Tengah tried to save the situation, but the king
and the minister both fell by the sword of the Kadirian troops.
This took place in the year 1292 A.D. in the month of Jyesja
(Jyaisjiha).

The detailed accounts of Pararaton, depicting the king
in the blackest colour, is in striking contrast to the other
accounts that we possess about him. The Singhasari inscription
of 1351 A.D. records the erection of a monument in memory
of the priests and the great mantri who died for the king.
This obviously gives a very different idea from a debauched
king meeting with his end while drinking wine. Again, while
Pararaton represents the king as a worthless debauchee, the
Nag. Kr. gives him the highest praise, and expressly states that
"none of the predecessors of the king was so famous as he."
While both are obvious exaggerations, it is difficult to strike a
just balance between the two extreme views. The imperial
policy of the king, as we have seen above, was eminently
successful and brought credit and distinction upon the kingdom
of Java. The learning and scholarship of the king and his
zeal for Buddhism may also be regarded as worthy of the highest
praise. According to Nag. Kr. the king was "well-versed in
the six-fold royal policy, expert in all branches of knowledge,
quite at home in (Buddhist) scriptures, and eminently righteous
in life and conduct". This may appear to be an obvious
exaggeration, but similar praise for scholarship and spiritual
excellence of the king, the lord of the four continents (dvlpa),
is also found in the Jaka-Dolok Inscription 1 . The book

j. Kern V. G. Vol. VII, pp. 189 ff. cf. Verses 10-12,

SUVARNADVlPA 303

Rajapatigundala is traditionally ascribed to the king, and this
view is possibly correct in spite of additions and alterations at
a later date. This work commences with an assurance from
the king that the members of Mandala (religious circle) need
not be afraid of any trouble from the royal officials. Indeed,
the king's passionate love for Buddhism has become proverbial.
He scrupulously followed in his life all the rules, regulations,
and injunctions of the religion. He was deeply versed in
Buddhist writings, particularly the Tarka and Vyakarana-Sastra
(logic and grammar) and that which concerns the inner self of
man. He thoroughly mastered the SubhQti-tantra, a work
ascribed to Subhuti, a disciple of Buddha. 1 The king prac-
tised yoga and samadhi, and made many pious foundations.
But his crowning achievement was the setting up of an image of
Dhyani Buddha Aksobhya, which depicted his own features
and thereby established his identity with Buddha.* After
his consecration as Buddha the king assumed the epithet
JfiftnaSivabajra. 8 The image of the king representing him as
Aksobhya was originally set up in 1289 A.D. at Wurare and
then removed to Majapahit. It now stands at Surabaya and
is held in special veneration by the people who strongly believe
in its miraculous powers.*

1. Krom thinks that this work is the same as 'Sanghyang tantra
bajradhatu Subhuti' composed in the time of Sincjuk. See ante, Chap II.

2. This is described in the Jaka-Dolok inscription engraved
on the pedestal of the image. The inscription, written in Sanskrit,
has been edited by Kern ( V. G., Vol. VII, pp. 189. ff.).

3. This is the name given in Jaka-Dolok Inscription (verse la).
The Nag. Kr. gives the variant Jftanabajresvara and the Singhasari
Inscription of 1351 A. D. (Brandes* Monograph 1909 p. 38 ), has
Jftanesvarabajra. On the bronze replica of Amoghapas'a in Can^i
Jago the king's name is given as ''Maharajadhiraja Sri Krtanagara
Vikrama-Jftana-Vajrottunggadeva," a combination of secular and
spiritual names.

4. Another image of Aksobhya, now at Malang, is believed by
Bosch to be a figure of king Krtanagara, on the ground of its resem-
blance with the image at Surabaya.

304 THE DYNASTY OF SlNGHASlRl

The curious contrast between the two opposing views of
the life and character of Krtanagara may perhaps be understood
if we accept the theory about the character of the king's reli-
gious faith so elaborately propounded by Moens in a very
learned article. 1 Moens has shown that the particular form
of Buddhism to which the king was devoted may be taken as
the Tantrayana or Vajrayana. This degraded form of Buddhism
was accompanied by objectionable and even revolting practices
such as the pancawakara (or five enjoyments) and the sadhana-
cab'a or secret sittings of devotees of both sexes. To a true
devotee of this mysterious cult the practices would no doubt
appear as worthy of the highest commendation, but to an
uninitiated they would appear obnoxious and horrid. The panca-
makara, for example, includes the free use of wine, and when
Pararaton refers to the drinking debout of Krtanagara he was
evidently telling the truth, though he viewed it in a different
light from Prapanca who remarked in an approving manner
that the king scrupulously followed the prescriptions of religion.
Thus there is perhaps no contradiction between Pararaton and
Nag. Kr. regarding the salient facts in the king's career, but
there was a world of difference in the two view-points.

Whatever we may think of Moens' reconstruction of the
entire religious career of the king, for the details of which we
refer to his learned article, we may regard it as almost certain
that the king was passionately devoted to the Tantrik form of
Buddhism. While, therefore, it is not difficult to divine the
cause of, or even to justify to some extent, the high praises that
the Nag. Kr. bestows upon the king, they should not blind us
to the fact that the king showed but little skill in administration
of his kingdom. While we may not be prepared to accept the
picture of the king, as given in Pararaton, drinking wine even
while the enemy was within the palace, we may take, as
historical, the general outline of the story as given above.
Engrossed by his imperial policy abroad, and religious practices

i. T. B. G. Vol. LXIV ( 1924 ), pp. 521-558.

SUVAENADVlPA 305

at home, the king was indifferent to the internal dangers that
threatened him and did not evidently take sufficient precautions
against them. According to Pararaton, the Kadirian rebellion
took place at a time when most of the Javanese troops were
absent on an expedition against Malayu. Krom disbelieves this
on the ground that the date of the Malayu expedition is 1275
whereas the rebellion took place only in 1292 A.D. 1 It is
not difficult to believe, however, that although the expedition
of 1275 was the first, it was by no means the last. To keep
control over a newly acquired territory in a distant land across
the sea might necessitate several expeditions, and the Pararaton
may after all be right in its assertion that Jayakatvang
took advantage of such an expedition. Even apart from this
we must recognise the fact that the imperial policy of
Kftanagara was sure to weaken the resources of Java in men
and money, and the troops stationed in the various newly
conquered territories to maintain the authority of the king,
very likely denuded Java of the best part of its troops when
the serious rebellion broke out. Another trait of the royal
character, alleged in Pararaton, viz. the king's childlike faith
in the goodness of others e.g. Jayakatwang and Vlraraja,
even when they deserved it least, may not be absolutely
unfounded. A religious enthusiasm which almost bordered
on fanaticism is hardly compatible with a true discernment
of men and things. We can well believe that the king,
engrossed in his books and keenly busy with his religious
practices, had hardly any time or capacity to look around
and keep a vigilant eye on the possible disturbing factors
of the kingdom. His implicit trust in others gave him a false
idea of security. Heedless of the impending dangers that
threatened him on all sides, he wildly pursued his imperial
and religious activities and rushed headlong towards destruction.
Thus it was that his ruin was brought about by precisely
those traits in his life and career which rendered him so high
and noble in the estimation of some. It was this paradox
i. Krom Geschiedenis, p. 340.
39

306 THE DYNASTY OF SINGHASlRI

and contradictory element in his life that is mainly responsible
for such radically different pictures of king Kytanagara
as have been preserved to us by our two chief authorities,
Pararaton and Nagara-Krtagama.

According to Nag. Kr. king Krtanagara was cremated
in a temple of Siva-Buddha and was represented by a beautiful
image of Siva-Buddha (or images of Siva and Buddha).
Perhaps it is due to this fact that the king himself is often
referred to as Siva-Buddha. According to the same authority
his ashes were also buried at Sagala, where he and his chief
queen Bajradcvl were represented by Buddhist figures of
Vairocana and Locana 1 . According to Pararaton the king's
remains were buried in the temple called Purvapatapan at
Singhasari. Moens thinks that the king was represented by
a Bhairava image which was originally at Singhasari and now
at Leyden.

The Nag. Kr. does not tell us where the temple of
Siva-Buddha was situated. But we know that the Candi Javi
(modern Jajava) near Prigen, was a Siva-Buddha temple
founded by Krtanagara. The identification of this temple
is rendered possible by the detailed account of the journey of
Hayam Wuruk. PrapaSca gives an account of it in Nag. Kr.
It contained an image of Siva and, hidden in the roof above,

j. The verses of Nag. Kr. are open to different interpretations.
For detailed discussion, cf. Krom-Geschiedenis 2 , pp. 344-5 ; Moens,
op. cit; also T. B. G. 1933, PP 123 ff. ; Stutterheim, T. B. G., 1932,
pp. 715-26. Stutterheim and Krom take the image to represent
Krtanagara- Vairocana as united with Bajradevi- Locana, and the
former identifies it with an Ardhanari image in the Berlin Museum.
Moens thinks that the image, referred to in Nag. Kr., must be an
Amoghapasa-Ardhanari with an Akobhya image in the head-dress.

According to Moens there were three images of deified Krtanagara
viz., (i) Linga in the Singhasari temple ; (2) Amoghapasa-Ardhanari
in the capital city ; and (3) Yamari at Jajavi.

Moens rejects Stutterheim 's identification of the Berlin image.

SUVARNADVlPA 307

an image of Aksobhya. It was struck by lightning in 1331,
and at present only the foundations of the temple remain.

It is, however, by no means certain that the Siva-Buddha
temple mentioned in Nag. Kr. is the same as Candi Javi.
Krom thinks that it was situated at Singhasari where the
king died and is the same as the temple of Purvapatapan
referred to in Pararaton. Brandes 1 and Mocns 2 identify it
with the main temple now existing at Singhasari. But
Krom rejects this view* and holds that no trace remains
either of this temple or of the temple of Sagala, the second
burial place of the king's remains according to Nag. Kr.

In concluding the account of king Krtanagara we may
refer to the very brief but interesting account of his kingdom
contained in the writings of Marco Polo (1292 A.D.)*. The
Venetian traveller describes Java as a prosperous kingdom,
under a great king. It was very rich and noted for its trade
and commerce.

1. Brandes Tjantfi Singhasari, 1909, pp. 36-3 8

2. Moens 1. c, pp. 547 ff.

3. Krom Inleidung, Vol. II, pp, 84-6.

4. Yule Marqo Polo, Vol. II, pp. 272-5.

Chapter V.
THE FOUNDATION OF MAJAPAHIT

With the death of Krtanagara, the kingdom of Singhasari
fell to pieces, and Jayakatvang established the supremacy
of Kadiri. The success of Jayakatvang may be viewed in
different lights. To the family of Krtanagara he, no doubt,
appeared as a usurper and traitor. But it is also possible to
regard him as having restored the supremacy of Kadiri,
which had been lost nearly seventy years ago, after a glorious
existence of about two centuries. Whatever that may be,
his success was too short-lived for these considerations to be
weighed seriously. The danger which overwhelmed him and
his kingdom at no distant date arose from two sources, vix. 9
prince Vijaya, who commanded the northern forces of
Singhasari at the time of the catastrophe ; and secondly, the
dreaded Mongol chief Kublai Khan, who was provoked
beyond measure by the cruel offence of Krtanagara as
mentioned above.

It has been already mentioned that when the forces of
Kadiri invaded the kingdom of Singhasari from the north,
king Krtanagara sent all his available troops against them
under his two sons-in-law, princes Vijaya and Arddharaja. The
details of the progress of this army and the ultimate fate of
Vijaya are known from a record of Vijaya himself, composed
two years after the incident. 1 As it gives us the most
curcumstantial account of the northern campaign, we may
proceed to narrate the story at some length, on the basis of
this contemporary record.

The army of Kadiri had reached Jasun Wungkal (probably
to the northern end of Penanggungan hill) when Vijaya and

I Singhasari Ins., dated 1294. Pararaton, pp. 95. ft.

SUVARNADVlPA 309

Arddhar&ja started from SinghasSri. The first encounter took
place at Kedung Pluk. As this place lies considerably to the
east of the direct route from Singhasari to Jasun Wungkal,
it is probable that the Kadirian army was taking a circuitous
route in order to decoy the troops of Vijaya as far as possible
from the capital city. The Kadirian army was defeated at
Kedung Pluk, and fled leaving a large number of dead on the
field. Vijaya pursued the enemy and again defeated it, with
great loss, near Kapulungan at the foot of the Penanggungan.
Proceeding further north, he inflicted a third defeat on the
enemy near Rabut Carat, which evidently lay to the north-east
of the Penanggungan hills.

After these three brilliant victories Vijaya naturally thought
that the enemy was totally routed. Then followed a strange
reverse. Suddenly a new Kadirian army appeared to the east
of Haniru, and Arddharaja, the colleague of Vijaya, deserted
the royal cause and retired to Kapulungan. The army of
Vijaya suffered a serious reverse and he fell back on Rabut
Carat. Although the record of Singhasari does not mention
it, there is no doubt that this crisis was the result of the
fall of Singhasari and death of king Krtanagara. The
southern Kadirian army which accomplished this task must
have now been released to assist the northern troops, and
Arddharaja, the son of Jayakatvang, naturally deserted the
cause of his dead father-in-law, and joined his successful and
victorious father.

The position of Vijaya was now rendered hopeless. With
about six hundred men that now remained with him he
proceeded northwards across the river Brantas to Pamvatan
apajeg (modern Pamotan). There the enemy pursued him.
Although he was successful in driving away the hostile attack,
his small army was dwindled still further, partly by loss in
battle, but still more by desertion. Then Vijaya took counsel
with his followers and decided to fall back upon Trung to
the north-west as the ruler of this place was attached to
(he late king. But on his way he fell iu with the enemy.

310 THE FOUNDATION OF MAJAPAHIT

large in number, and was forced to fly northwards to Kembang
Sri (Bangsri). But as the enemy pursued him there, Vijaya
and his followers swam across the river (the Surabaya river).
Many perished in the river, some were killed by the enemy,
and with only twelve men Vijaya reached the village
Kudadu 1 . The headman of the village received him
cordially and gave him shelter- till he found means
to go to Rembang and then cross over to Madhura
( Madura ). Two years later, when Vijaya became king, he
granted, in token of gratitude, certain gifts and privileges to
this man who saved his life, and in the royal charter which
was issued on the occasion the king narrated at length
the circumstances, mentioned above, which forced him to
take shelter in the house of the headman of Kudadu.

This narrative, as described in the official record, presum-
ably on the authority of Vijaya himself, does not tally with
the account given in Pararaton which appears to be an
abridged but slightly different version of the detailed and
romantic story preserved in PaSji Vijayakrama 2 . According
to the latter, after Vijaya had defeated the northern Kadirian
army, he heard of the death of Krtanagara, and came back to
SinghasSri to recover the capital. He was, however, defeated
by Kebo Mundarang, the leader of the southern Kadirian army.
Being pursued, he fled towards the north, but as soon as the
pursuit was given up, he returned to Singhas&ri and rescued,
during night, one of the two daughters of Krtanagara who had
fled from the enemy's camp. On the approach of Kadirian
army Vijaya again took to flight, and leaving one of his
wounded companions in charge of the head of the village Pan-
dakan, sailed with the rest from Datar to Madura. The story
particularly dwells upon the heroic feats of Vijaya and his
companions, Sora, Rangga Lawe, and Nambi (the son of
Viraraja).

I. For the location of Kudadu cf. Feestbundel, Vol. II. p. 375.
It was most probably to the east of modern Wanakuli and Bugangin.
1. Berg Rangga Lawe, I, 36-114. Djawa, Vol. 10, pp. i3

SUVARNADVIPA 311

It is evident that while only the general outline of the
story ( viz. the flight of Vijaya towards the north and
ultimately to Madura, but not his return to SinghasSri) is
correct, the details are all wrong. Unfortunately, for the
history of Vijaya after he reached Madura, we are almost
entirely dependent on the story preserved in Pararaton, which
agrees with that of Paiiji Vijayakrama. We shall, therefore,
summarise this story for what it is worth, and may accept the
general outline as historical, at least as a working hypothesis.

Vijaya went to Madura, as he hoped to find an ally in its
governor Viraraja, who owed everything to the late king
Kftanagara. He was, of course, ignorant of the treasonable
correspondence between Viraraja and Jayakatvang. Viraraja,
astounded at first by the sight of Vijaya, soon collected himself
and received Vijaya with all outward signs of honour.
Vijaya made a passionate appeal to him : "Viraraja, my
father", said he, "my obligations to you indeed are very great.
If I ever succeed in attaining my object, I shall divide Java
into two parts ; one part will be yours and one part will be
mine." This bait was too much for Viraraja. This arch-
conspirator now betrayed Jayakatvang and entered into a
conspiracy with Vijaya.

Viraraja's plan was in short as follows : Vijaya should
submit to Jayakatvang and ingratiate himself into the favour
of the latter. As soon as he had sufficient influence with the
king he should ask for a piece of waste land near Trik
where the people from Madura would establish a settlement.
As soon as Vijaya could gather sufficient information about the
men and things in Kadiri, he would ask leave to settle in the
new region and gather there his own trusty followers from
Singhasari and all the discontented elements from Kadiri.

The plan was admirably carried out. A new settlement
sprang up, and as one of the settlers tasted a Maja (Vilva)
fruit and threw it away as bitter (pahit) it came to be called
Majapahit or its Sanskrit equivalent 'Vilva-tikta, Tikta-vilva,
Srlphala-tikta, Tikta-Sriphala, Tikta-matura etc., (bitter Maja or

312 THE FOUNDATION OF MAJAPAHIT

Vilva fruit). From his new home at Majapahit Vijaya sent
word to Viraraja that everything was ready. But that cunning
fellow would riot risk such an enterprise without securing
further help. So he intrigued again, this time with the great
Tatar king (i.e. Kublai Khan). He allured him with the
false hope of giving in marriage to him both the daughters
of Krtanagara, and for this reward Kublai promised him
military support. Being thus assured, Viraraja proceeded
with his men to Majapahit, and as soon as the troops of the
Tatar king arrived, marched against Kadiri.

This is the narrative of Pararaton. The story of the
second treason of Viraraja may be accepted as true, particu-
larly in view of the high position he later occupied in the
court of Vijaya. Vijaya's pretended submission to Jayakatvang
and settlement at Majapahit may also be regarded as true,
and we may thus discount the popular notion about the
existence of that town from a much earlier period. 1 But
i. The general belief that Majapahit was founded many centuries
ago rests upon (i) an inscription dated 840 A. D. ending with the words
11 written at Majapahit" and (2) reference to a town Mazafawid in Zabag,
in an Arabic text of tenth century A D. But Brandes has conclusively
proved (Par. pp.H2-i 16) that the inscription really belongs to a period later
than the I3th century A. D., while Ferrand has shown that the name of
the town in the Arabic text is to be transcribed as Marakawand (Ferrand-
Textes, II. pp. 585!!. J. A. II XIII (1919) p. 303). There is thus no
evidence of the existence of Majapahit earlier than 1292, when (or at the
beginning of 1293) the town was founded by Vijaya according to
Pararaton. Brandes has further shown that this story of Pararaton
is supported by the later traditions preserved in Javanese Babads.

The town of Majapahit was founded in a locality which was a
populous centre, though its actual site might have been a waste ground.
It must have come into existence during the interval between the death
of Krtanagara, early in 1292, and the Chinese invasion at the beginning
of 1293. T he tQ wn must have been considerably extended in later times,
its centre lying in modern Travulan south-west of modern Majakerta.
For its topography, ruins, and extent ascertained by modern archaeologi-
cal research cf. O. V. 1924 (36-75, 157 >99) ; 1926(100-129) ; 1929 (MS-
S5) J B. K. I. Vol. 89 (1932, pp. 105-110).

SUVAENADVlPA 313

the story of the inducement offered to Kublai Khan is silly
in the extreme, and fortunately the Chinese sources give us a
more reliable account of the motive and details of the
expedition, which undoubtedly brought the kingdom of Kadiri
to an end. It is, therefore, unnecessary to reproduce the brief
account preserved in Nag. Kr. (44 : 1-4), and the more detailed
but romantic and unreliable accounts of the expedition that
we find in Pararaton ( pp. 90rf ) and PaSji Vijayakrama. 1

The History of the Yuan Dynasty gives a general account
of the expedition to Java and this is supplemented by the
biography of the three leaders of that expedition.* By
combining these four accounts it is possible to get a definite
idea of the nature and result of that expedition.

It has already been mentioned how Kftanagara had
provoked the wrath of the great Kublai Khan by mutilating
the face of his envoy. In order to avenge this insult the
emperor organised an expedition against Java. "In the second
month of the year 1292 the emperor issued an order to the
governor of Fukien, directing him to send Che-pi, Yi-k'o-
mu-su 8 and Kau Hsing in command of an army to subdue
Java; to collect soldiers... to the number of 20,000 ;... to send
out a thousand ships and to equip them with provisions for
a year and with forty thousand bars of silver.

"When the three generals had their last audience, the
emperor said to them : 'When you arrive at Java you must
clearly proclaim to the army and the people of that country
that the imperial government has formerly had intercourse
with Java by envoys from both sides and has been in good

1. VII, 7-17 j Mid. Jav. Trad. pp. 58-60 ; Djawa, Vol. 10, pp,
146 &

2. These accounts have been translated by Groeneveldt (Notes,
pp. 20-30). The passages within inverted comma are quotations from
these accounts.

3. The names are transcribed thus by Pelliot (B. E. F. E. 0., Vol.
IV, pp, 326ff). Groeneveldt writes Shih-pi and Ike-Mese.

40

314 THE FOUNDATION OF MAJAPAHIT

harmony with it, but that they have lately cut the face of
the imperial envoy Meng-chi and that you have come to
punish them for that."

The emperor further gave them the following instructions :
'When you have arrived in Java, you must send a messenger
to inform me of it. If you occupy that country, the other
smaller states will submit of themselves, you will have only
to send envoys to receive their allegiance. When those
countries are reduced to submission your work mil be
finished."

In the 12th month of 1292 A.D. the expedition sailed from
Ch'iian-chou and reached the port of Tuban on the northern
coast of E. Java. There the Chinese army was divided into
two parts. Half the army marched overland. With the
other half, Che-pi went by sea to the mouth of the river
Sugalu (Solo river) and from there to the river Pa-tsieh-kan. l
(Surabaya river).

Some Chinese officers who were sent in advance to the
interior now came back and reported the internal affairs of
that country which are described as follows :

"At that time Java carried on an old feud with the neigh-
bouring country Kalang (Kadiri) and the king of Java Hadji
Ka-ta-na-ka-la- (Krtanagara) had already been killed by the
prince of Kalang, called Hadji Katang (Jayakatvang). The
son-in-law of the former, Tuhan Pidjaya (Vijaya) had attacked
Hadji Katang but could not overcome him ; he had, therefore,
retired to Madjopait (Majapahit) and when he heard that

i . The name of the last river is given as "the small river Pa-tsieh",
the syllable 'kan' being taken as a separate word meaning 'small 1 . But
Krom takes Pa-tsieh-kan as the Chinese equivalent of Pacekan, and
identifies this and the Sugalu river (Ferrand transcribes it as Su-ya-lu)
respectively with the Surabaya and Solo rivers. But on the basis of the
interpretation 'small river Pa-tsieh', it is possible to identify the two
rivers respectively with the Prom and Surabaya rivers, Krom
Geschiedenis 2 , p. 358 and foot-notes.

SUVARNADVlPA 315

Che-pi-with his army had arrived, he sent envoys offering
submission and asking for assistance."

This summary of the political situation in Java enables us
to correct the account of Pararaton in one important respect.
It shows that at the beginning of 1293 A. D. Vijaya had
already established himself at Majapahit, not under a pretence
of submission to Jayakatvang, but as his avowed enemy. The
probability is that shortly after his flight to Madura (1292 A.D.) he
returned to Java and obtained sufficient means to make a bold
stand against Jayakatvang. He had as yet failed to secure
a victory against his foe, and so he thought of utilising the
Chinese expedition to his advantage. He immediately offered
his submission and sent his Prime-minister with fourteen other
officials to meet the Chinese army.

Jayakatvang, on the other hand, made preparations to
defend his country. He sent his Prime-minister Hi-ning-kuan
with a flotilla of boats to guard the mouth of the Surabaya
river, and himself advanced against Majapahit.

The Chinese army reached the Surabaya river (Pa-tsieh-
kan) on the first day of the third month. Here, for the first
time, they came across the hostile fleet, guarding the mouth of
the river. The Chinese annals continue : "It (the mouth of
the river) is the entrance to Java and a place for which they
were determined to fight. Accordingly the first minister of
the Javanese, Hi-ning kuan, remained in a boat to see how the
chances of the fight went ; he was summoned repeatedly, but
would not surrender. The commander of the imperial army
made a camp in the form of a crescent on the bank of the
river and left the ferry in charge of a commander of Ten
Thousand ; the fleet in the river and the cavalry and infantry
on shore then advanced together and Hi-ning-kuan, seeing this,
left his boat and fled overnight, whereupon more than a hundred
large ships, with devil-heads on the stem, were captured." This
took place on the first day of the third month.

After this naval victory the Chinese leaders advanced to
Majapahit to assist Vijaya against Jayakatvang.

316 THE FOUNDATION OF MAJAPAHIT

'On the seventh day the soldiers of Kalang (Kadiri)
arrived from three sides to attack Tuhan Pidjaya (Vijaya).
On the morning of the eighth day, Kau Hsing fought with
the enemy on the south-east and killed several hundreds of
them, whilst the remainder fled to the mountains. Towards
the middle of the day the enemy arrived also from the
south-west. Kau Hsing met them again, and towards evening
they were defeated/ We hear of no encounter with the
third Division of Kadirian troops. Probably they retreated
on hearing the fate of the other two.

Majapahit was saved, but the main army of the king of
Kadiri was still at large. So, 'on the 15th, the army was
divided into three bodies, in order to attack Kalang (Kadiri).
A part of the troops ascended the river ( Brantas) under
Che-pi 1 . Yi-k'o-mu-su proceeded by the eastern road and
Kau Hsing took the western, whilst Tuhan Pidjaya (Vijaya)
with his army brought up the rear.

'On the 19th they (i.e. the different divisions of the army)
arrived at Taha (Daha, the capital of Kadiri) where the
prince of Kalang defended himself with more than a hundred
thousand soldiers. The battle lasted from 6 A.M. till 2 P.M.,
and three times the attack was renewed, when the (Kadirian)
army was defeated and fled ; several thousand thronged into
the river and perished there, whilst more than 5,000 were slain.
The king retired into the inner city which was immediately
surrounded by Chinese army, and the king summoned
to surrender. In the evening the king whose name was
Haji Katang (Jayakatvang) came out of the fortress and
offered his submission. His wife, his children and officers
were taken by the victors who then went back V

1. It is not expressly stated that Che-pi was the leader of this
group. It is said, however, in the account of Che-pi that he divided the
army into three parts, himself, Kau Hsing, and Yi-ko'-mu-su each
leading a Division.

2. The last sentence is taken from the account of Che-pi. The
main account simply says ; "On this the orders of the emperor were

SUVARNADVlPA 317

Jayakatvang's son 1 had fled to the mountains, but
Kau Hsing went into the interior with a thousand men and
brought him back a prisoner.

While Kau Hsing was away on this expedition, a new act In
the tragic drama began. Vijaya asked for permission to return
to his country in order to prepare a new letter of submission
to the Emperor and to take the precious articles in his
possession for sending them to court. Che-pi and Yi-kVmu-su
consented to this. On the 2nd day of the 4th month Vijaya
left the Chinese camp. The Chinese generals sent two officers
with 200 men to accompany him. As soon as Kau Hsing
learnt this on his return, he disapproved of the act, and his
apprehensions only proved too true.

Vijaya, having got rid of Jayakatvang, had no more need
of his Chinese allies and wanted to get rid of them. He killed
his Chinese escort on the 19th, and having collected a large
force, attacked the imperial army on its way back from Kadiri.
'Kau Hsing and others fought bravely with him and threw him
back. Che-pi was behind and was cut off from the rest of the
army. He was obliged to fight Ms way for 300 li before
he arrived at the ships. Of his soldiers more than 3,000
had died'.

'The generals now thought of carrying on the war
(evidently against Vijaya), but Yi-k'o-mu-su wished to do as
the emperor had ordered them and first send a messenger
to court. The two others could not agree to this, therefore
the troops were withdrawn and on the 24th day of the
4th month they returned with their prisoners and with the
envoys of the different smaller states which had submitted'.

delivered to him and he was told to go back.' The account of the fall
of Kadiri, given in Pararaton and Paftji Vijayakrama, differs considera-
bly from the Chinese accounts, and cannot be regarded as historical.

i. The name is written in Chinese as Sih-lah-pat-ti Sih-Iah-tan-
puh-hah.

318 THE FOUNDATION OP MAJAPAHIT

Haji Katang (Jayakatvang) and his son were killed by the
Chinese before they left Java 1 .

It is interesting to note that 'by an imperial decree Che-pi
and Yi-kVmu-su who had allowed the prince of Java to go away
were punished 8 , but as Kau Hsing had taken no part in this
decision, and, moreover, greatly distinguished himself, the
emperor rewarded him with 50 taels of gold'.

Thus ended the strange episode of the Chinese invasion of
Java. They came to punish Kftanagara, but really helped
the restoration of his family by killing his enemy Jayakatvang,
The net result of the expedition was to make Vijaya the
undisputed master of Java with Majapahit as its capital.
He soon re-established the friendly relations with the Chinese
emperor. For we find embassies from Java at the imperial
court in 1297, 1298, 1300 and 1308 A.D. 8 .

With the death of Jayakatvang the short-lived kingdom of
Ka<Jiri came to an end, and, as Nag. Kr. puts it, the world
breathed freely once more (45 : 1).

1. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 28. According to Pararaton, however,
Jayakatvang lived long enough after this to compose a poem called
Wukir Polaman. Probably he died after a short term of imprisonment.
Cf. B. K. I., Vol. 88 (1931), pp. 38, 48.

2. One-third of the property of each was confiscated! and Che-
pi got, in addition, seventeen lashes. Some time later, both were
forgiven. Their property was restored and they were raised to high
ranks.

3. Toung Pao, Ser. II, Vol. XV. (1914), p. 446.

Chapter VI

THE JAVANESE EMPIRE

Vijaya assumed the name of Kytarajasa Jayavarddhana
after his accession to the throne. Majapahit, which played such
an important rftle in the recent happenings, became the capital
of the new king, who rightly proclaimed himself, in the record
of 1294 A.D., as the master of the whole of Java (Samasta-
yavadvfpeSvara). Although the capital was changed, the new
kingdom may justly be regarded as the continuation of the
kingdom of Singhasari, with a short break of two years, due
to the assumption of royal authority by Jayakatvang. For
Kjtarajasa combined in himself various claims to be regarded
as the rightful heir to the throne of Singhasari. In the
Singhasari record of 1294 A.D. he makes a pointed refer-
ence to these claims. He was not only descended from
NarasinghanagaradharmmaviSesa (probably the same as Mahla
Wong Ateleng, son of Rajasa) and grandson of Narasingha-
mflrtti (the coronation name of Mahlsa Campaka, son of
Mahia Wong Ateleng ), but he had also married the
daughters of the late king Kftanagara who had no
male issue. This latter aspect is indeed too much empha-
sised in Nag. Kr. (45 : 2-47). It refers by name to four
daughters of Kptanagara as the four queens of Kjlarajasa and
expressly adds how their sight gladdened the hearts of all.
It expatiates at length on the affectionate relation between the
king and the four queens, so much so, that the command of
one, thanks to this complete harmony among them, was really
the command of all. The special stress laid on the position of
the daughters may indicate that although Krtarajasa ruled by
his own right, the daughters of Kytanagara also exercised some
royal authority derived from their father. This would explain
why the royal power was assumed, a few years after Krtarajasa's

320 THE JAVANESE EMPIRE

death, by the youngest of his queens, who ruled not as dowager-
queen or queen-mother, but on her own right as daughter of
Kytanagara. The name of this queen was Gayatrl, though she
is usually referred to as Rajapatm, the queen par excellence.
By her the king had two daughters, but the three other queens
had no issue.

Kytarajasa had a fifth queen, a princess of Malay u. This
kingdom in Sumatra had been already conquered by Krtanagara,
and it may be recalled that the despatch of a military expedi-
tion to it is put forward in Pararaton as the cause of the
downfall of that king. As soon as the Javanese army of
occupation at Malayu heard of the catastrophic end of their
king they must have naturally made preparations to return.
We learn from Paiiji Vijayakrama that they brought rich
tributes paid by the vanquished princes and their leader got
the title Mahlsa Anabrang. 1 According to Pararaton, they
reached Java ten days after Vijaya had finally triumphed over
the Chinese army and brought with them two princesses of
Malayu. The younger, Dara-Petak, also known as IndreSvarl
was married by Krtarajasa. The elder princess, Dara Jingga,
was married to a 'Deva' and became the mother of the king of
Malayu, Tuhan Janaka, called also Sri Marmadeva and Haji
Mantrolot. In view of the growing importance of Malayu,
which evidently became an independent state after the with-
drawal of Javanese troops, the marriage relation between the
royal houses of Java and Malayu was undoubtedly a fact of
great political importance. It was specially so, because Dara
Petak bore a son to Krtarajasa, and the boy was heir-presump-
tive to the throne. In 1295 Krtarajasa anointed the son, named
Jayanagara and Kala Gemet, as the prince of Kadiri.

We do not know of any event in the reign of Krtarajasa.
We indeed meet with Vlrar&ja as the highest dignitary in the
court, enjoying large grants of land in the eastern corner of
Java, but this was a poor compensation for half the kingdom of

I. VII, 147-150. Mid. Jav. Trad., p. 6l.

SUVARNADVIPA 321

Java which the king had promised him in his dark days of
exile and penury. On the whole Krtarajasa ruled in peace and
prosperity and died in 1309. * He had two memorial temples,
a Buddhist sanctuary within his palace at Majapahit, and
the Saiva temple of Simping, the present Candi Sumberjati
to the south of Blitar 8 . Nothing remains of the latter
except the foundations, but it has furnished a beautiful
portrait of the king, as Harihara, which is now preserved
in the Museum at Batavia. A figure of Parvati, in the temple
of Rimbi, south-west of Majakerta, offers so striking a
similarity in style to the Harihara image, that it has been
regarded as portraying the figure of one of the queens,
probably the seniormost one, named Tribhuvana.

K^tarajasa was succeeded by Ids son Jayanagara. His
two half-sisters received the titles of the princess of Kahuripan
(or in Sanskrit Jlvana) and princess of Daha or Kadiri.
These two titles were evidently derived from the two kingdoms
into which Java was once divided.

The reign of Jayanagara was full of troubles. If we are
to believe in Pararaton, the troubles arc due to the dis-
satisfaction of the companions of Krtarajasa who stood
by him in weal and woe but did not think themselves
sufficiently rewarded by the king. So long as the strong hands
of Krtarajasa were there, they remained quiet, but as soon as
a young inexperienced king came to the throne they rose
against him. In this connection prominence is given to one
Mahapati, who stood by king Jayanagara in all his troubles.
It has been suggested that the discontent was mainly directed
against Mahapati rather than the king, but it is not quite clear
whether the former's haughty conduct was responsible for the
outbreak of troubles, or whether the rebels were furious at him
because he stood between them and the young king whom they
wanted to bring to grief.

1. T. B. G., Vol. 56 (1914), p. 147.

2. O. V., 1916, pp. 51-55.
41

322 THE JAVANESE EMPIRE

The dates of succeeding events, as given in Pararaton, are
hopelessly wrong, but relying upon the sequence of events and
interval between them, Poerbatjaraka has suggested a scheme
of chronology which is generally accepted. 1 It appears that
the first rebellion broke out in 1309 A.D. The leader of
this, Rangga Lawc, aspired to the office of Prime-minister, but
having failed in his object, organised a rebellion at Tuban.
He was joined by a number of persons. It is suggested in Par.
that Mahapati roused the suspicion of the king against him by
quoting some of his utterances, and hence he was not selected
as the minister. A different, but more detailed, account is
given in Kidung Rangga Lawc. Here no reference is made
to Mahapati, but Rangga Lawe is goaded to rebellion as
Nambi, and not he, was appointed Prime-minister. Further,
Rangga Lawe, and not Nambi, was the son of VirarSja who had
fortified himself at Tuban instead of going back to Madura.
On the whole it is a different version and equally untrust-
worthy. 8 All that we can safely conclude is that Rangga Lawe
organised a rebellion in 1309 with Tuban as centre, but the
rebellion was soon subdued, and Rangga Lawc perished with
most of his followers.

Next came the turn of Sora. He, too, rebelled, and perished
in 1311 A. D. Some details of this episode are given in the
recently discovered book Sorandaka, 3 but they can hardly
be regarded as authentic.

The old Vlraraja also thought the moment ripe for striking
a blow for himself. He followed the policy which he had
suggested to Vijaya. He ingratiated himself into the favour
of the king and then asked leave to set up in Lamayang. There

1. T. B.C., Vol. 56 (1914), pp. M7ff. The date of the first
rebellion, 1309 A. D , is given on the authority of Krom-Geschiedenis 8
p. 372. It might have taken place even during the reign of Krtarajasa
(cf. Mid. Jav. Trad. p. 75).

2. Mid. Jav. Trad. pp. 66-75.

3. Feest. Bat. Gen., Vol. I. (1929), pp. 22-34.

SUVARNADVlPA 323

he firmly established himself and never came back to Majapahit,
not even at the time of the official Durbar of the eighth month.
The king put up with it and there was no open rebellion. Next
came the turn of Nambi, the son of Vlraraja, and one of the
few companions of Vijaya during his flight. He was a high
functionary at court, but Mahapati succeeded in rousing
the suspicion of the king against him. Nambi was, however,
too clever and moved very cautiously. He took leave to see
his father who was ill. He then established himself at Lembah,
built a fort there, and collected an army. About this time died
Vlraraja, the old arch-conspirator, before he could complete
his treachery. Nambi, however, proceeded to carry out his
father's plan. In 1316 the royal army proceeded against him.
According to Nag. Kr., which mentions only this incident in
Jayanagara's reign, it was the king who first took the field
against Nambi. This is, perhaps, true, for although Nambi had
not openly rebelled, he was silently preparing for the coming
conflict, and the king naturally thought it prudent to attack
him before his preparations were completed. After a short
campaign, the strongholds of Nambi were captured and he
perished with his followers.

Several minor rebellions occurred both before and after
that of Nambi. Passing by them, we come to the rebellion of
Kuti, in 1319. Kuti was one of the seven Dharmaputras who
occupied a high position in the kingdom. Pararaton has given
us a long and romantic account of this rebellion. It is said that
in course of this rebellion the king left his capital city and
fled during night to Badander with only a body-guard of fifteen
men under the command of Gajah Mada who was destined to
become famous at no distant date. Gajah Mada returned to
the capital and reported that the king was killed by Kuti's men.
This caused a great sorrow in the capital. Gajah Mada
concluded from this that the people were yet attached to the
king and did not like Kuti. Thereupon he divulged the
secret to the ministers who killed Kuti, and the king was
restored to the throne. The account of this episode, as

324 THE JAVANESE EMPIRE

given in Par., is puzzling in the extreme. It represents
Kuti in a favourable light and accuses Mahapati of bringing
a false charge against him in consequence of which the great
minister was arrested and put to death by the king. It
further says that the king undertook the journey to Badander
of his own accord. But there can be hardly any doubt that
Kuti actually rebelled and that the king had to take to
flight as Kuti had become master of the city and the palace.
Mahapati evidently lost his life in course of the troubles
caused by Kuti.

Gajah Mada was suitably rewarded for his services.
According to Par. he first became governor (patih) of
Kahuripan, and, after two years, that of Daha, and he remained
in this post from 1321 onward till he became Prime-minister in
1331. The specific dates are proved to be wrong by an
inscription 1 which shows that in 1323 somebody else was
governor of Daha. But there is no doubt that Gajah Mada
served for some time as governor of Daha and was occupying
that post in 1330 A. D.

The rebellion of Kuti in 1319 was the last organised attempt
against the central authority. The inscription of 1323, referred
to above, no doubt raises some suspicion about the continued
peace or stability of the kingdom. In this inscription the
name of the king is written as "Srl-Sundara PandyadevS-
dhiSvara-nama-rajabhiseka Vikramottunggadcva" preceded by
a number of Sanskrit epithets. This peculiarly south-Indian
PSndya name is apt to give rise to a suspicion whether the
king referred to in the record is Jayanagara or some other
person. But the fact that this name appears also in 1314, and
that a number of officers mentioned in the record also served
under the successors of Jayanagara, lead to the conclusion
that we have to take Sundara Pandya Vikramottunggadeva as
the consecration or official name of Jayanagara. The seal-mark
of the king was 'Mlnadvaya' or 'two fishes', again a Pandya

i. O.J.O., No. LXXXIII.

SUVABNADVlPA 325

custom. There was evidently a close association between
Java and South-India during this period. 1

We have a short reference to Java about this time in the
writings of Odoric Van Pordenon 3 who visited the archipelago
in 1321. He says that the king of Java exercises suzerainty
over seven other kings, the land is very populous and produces
spices, and that the palace is decorated with gold, silver and
precious stones.

The political greatness of Java is also referred to in the
inscription of 1323 A.D. It refers to the kingdom as comprising
the whole of Java and includes among its foreign possessions
Madura, TaSjungpura, i. e. Borneo etc. Thus although Java
might have lost its influence in the west, its political supremacy
in the east was yet unimpaired. Java also maintained good
relations with China and sent regular embassies in 1322, 1325,
1326, and 1327. In 1328, when the last-named mission returned,
they brought from the Chinese emperor official robes and
bows and arrows for the Javanese king Cha-ya-na-ko-nai,
which corresponds well to Jayanagara. 3

According to the story of Par. the closing years of
Jayanagara were again full of troubles. First, the king fell
out with the nobles of his court. He wanted to marry one of
his step-sisters, but some of the nobles tried to do the same,
or, at least, was suspected by the king to make attempts in
that direction. In was not perhaps a mere romantic sentiment
which influenced the king's decision. His half-sister was a
descendant of the legitimate king Krtanagara, arid her husband
could establish a claim to the throne, superior to his own.
A powerful noble wedded to his sister would thus prove a

1. Cf. Acta orientalia Vol. XII, Pars II (pp. 133*?) for further
instances of such a close association.

2. Yule-Cordier Cathay and the Way Thither, Vol. 2. (1913),
PP. 146-155.

3. T'oung Pao, Ser. II. Vol. XV (1914)* P- 446. I find no
authority for the Javanese mission to China in 1328 referred to by Krom-
Goschiedenis 2 , p. 380.

326 THE JAVANESE EMPIRE

formidable rival, and the king wanted to prevent this compli-
cation by marrying the sister himself.

But before this question could be finally decided the king
met with a tragic end in a quite unexpected way. The king
had outraged the modesty of the wife of TaSca, another
Dharmaputra of the type of Kuti, and the latter naturally bore
a grudge against the king. Now the king was suffering from
a boil, and Tanca, who was evidently also the court-physician,
was asked to treat the king. While operating upon the king,
TaSca killed him by the surgical instruments and was himself
killed by Gajah Mada. Thus died Jayanagara in 1328 A.D. 1

According to Par. the king was cremated at Kapopongan,
also called Srngapura. The site has not yet been identified.
According to Nag. Kr. two figures of the king as Visnu were
set up at SilS Petak and Bubat and one as Amoghasiddhi
at Sukallla. All these places were probably in the neighbour-
hood of Majapahit. It may be noted that some temples were
erected near Panataran during the reign of Jayanagara,

As Jayanagara left no male heir, the nearest female heiress
was 'Kajapatni', mentioned above, viz. the daughter of
Kftanagara, and the widow of Krtarajasa. As she had adopted
the life of a Buddhist nun, her eldest daughter Tribhuvano-
ttunggadevl Jayavisnuvardhanl* acted as regent for her mother.
She was known to posterity as the princess of Jlvana or
Kahuripan (Bhre Kahuripan), a title which she bore probably
before, and certainly after her period of regency. During
the regentship she was called the queen of Majapahit while
her son, the heir-presumptive to the throne, bore the title,
'prince of Jlvana/ Her personal name appears to be Gitarjja.*

1. According to traditions preserved in Bali, the king outraged
the modesty of Gajah Mada's wife, and the latter plotted his assassina-
tion (O. V. 1924, pp. i46ff. ; Mid. Jav. Trad., p. 76).

2. In an inscription of 1330 A.D. the name is given as
'Tribhuvanottunggaraja Anantavikramottunggadevi', and she is referred
to as incarnation of LaksmI(Kron>Geschiedenis 2 p. 387. fn, i).

J-!1_O- V- I9 ! 7i P- 48, and 1918, p. 108.

SUVARNADVIPA 327

The regent had married, shortly after her brother's death, a
Ksatriya, named Cakradhara or Cakrefivara. 1 After his
marriage, he received the ceremonial name Kptavarddhana, and
the title 'Prince of Singhasari'. The younger sister of the
regent, princess Daha or Kadiri (Bhre Daha), took the ceremo-
nial name Vijayadevl or Rajadevl Maharajasa. She married
Kudamrta whose ceremonial name was Vijayarajasa, and the
title, Prince of Vengker'. lie was also known as Parana eSvara
or ParameSvara Pamotan.

In 1331 Sadeng and Keta revolted against the regent.
These places were in the neighbourhood of Bcsuki. The revolts
were put down by the royal troops. During the same year
Gajah Mada, the governor of Daha already mentioned above,
became the chief minister (Pati of Majapahit). His appoint-
ment might have something to do with the revolts, though the
part he played in it is not quite clear. The long-drawn story
in Par. regarding this episode is obscure in the extreme.

From this time Gajah Mada plays a prominent part in the
government. Par. credits him with the conquest of a number
of islands in the archipelago such as Gurun, Seran, TaSjung-
pura, Haru, Pahang, Dompo, Bali, Sunda, Palembang, and
Tumasik. Among these Gurun (Gorong*, TaSjungpura (in
Borneo), and Pahang (in Malay Peninsula) already belonged to
the empire of Krtanagara as we have seen above. As to the
rest, whether they were all conquered during the period of
regency cannot be ascertained. It is likely that some later
conquests have been wrongly ascribed to this period. Malayu
again figures as a vassal state. The relations with China
continued friendly and we hear of a very large mission
(consisting of no less than 83 persons) from Java presenting a
golden letter to the emperor in 1332 A.D. 2 .

The Nag. Kr. refers to an expedition against the island of
Bali in 1343 A.D. It appears that the authority of Java was

1. The marriage took place before 1330 A. D., as the husband
is named in the inscription referred to in footnote No. 2, p, 326,

2. T'oung Pao, Ser. II. Vol. XV, (1914), p. 447.

328 THE JAVANESE EMPIRE

established over part of that island as early as 1338 A.D., as in
that year the regent founded there a Buddhist sanctuary.
The expedition of 1343 may be a continuation of that of 1338
or a new one to make a thorough conquest of the island. In
any case the results of the expedition were quite satisfactory
and the island of Bali was thoroughly subdued.

In 1350 died queen Rajapatnl. She was buried at ViSesa-
pura at Bhayalango in Kadiri and figured there as a Prajfia-
parainita 1 . Prince Hayam Wuruk, the son of the regent
Tribhuvanottunggadevl, came to the throne in 1350, on the
death of his grandmother Rajaputnl. He was then only
sixteen years old. His coronation name was Rajasanagara,
though he is generally referred to by his old name Hayam
Wuruk. Henceforth his mother occupied the second place in
the kingdom, and is referred to as princess of Jlvana or
Kahuripan (Bhre Kahuripan).

According to Par, the king had several other names, such
as, (1) Bhatara Prabhu, (2) Baden Tetep, (3) Sivaiet mpu
JaneSvara and (4) Sanghyang Wekas ing Sukha, in addition to
three more derived from the king's participation in the Wajang.
Of these the name Bhatara Prabhu may be traced in the forms
Sri-Pah-ta-la-po and Pa-ta-na pa-na-wu preserved in Chinese
annals in connection with Javanese embassies sent in 1370,
1377, 1379 and 1380'. The name Sivaiet perhaps refers to the
king's special leaning towards Saivism. The fourth name also
occurs in literature, e.g. Arjunavijaya. The poem Sutasoma
calls the king Rajasarajya, presumably a variant of Raja-
sanagara.

The first notable incident in the reign of the king was
his marriage with a Sunda princess in 1357 A. D. After the
preliminary negotiations about the match were settled the

1. Krom-Inleidung Vol. II. pp. 206-8. Crucq regards a figure
in Batavia Museum (No. 288) as that of Rajapatnl (O. V. 1930,
pp. 219*221, pi. 54 a )-

2. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 35 .

SUVARNADVlPA 329

king of Sunda, called Maharaja, came to Bubat near Majapahit
with his daughter. A difference, however, soon arose. The
Sundanese king desired that her daughter should be treated
on an equal footing, and the marriage ceremony should be as
between equals. The Majapahit court, on the other hand,
regarded the Sundaiieso king as subordinate, and wanted
to celebrate the marriage as between a suzerain king and his
feudatory. The Sundanese would not tolerate this indignity
and refused to give up the princess. Thereupon the Majapahit
troops surrounded the whole party. The nobles of Sunda
preferred death to dishonour, and after brave fight, perished
to a man. Amidst this ghastly tragedy the princess was
married to the king. According to Kidung Sunda 1 , however,
the bride also perished in the general massacre that followed
the fight. But in any case, the Sundanese princess died
shortly. After her death the king married Paramcsvarl
(Susumiiadevi, according to Nag. Kr.), the daughter of prince
of Vengker. As already remarked above, the latter had married
the king's maternal aunt, but Paramesvarl was his daughter
by a previous marriage. King Riljasanagara had a daughter
by this queen, some time before 1365 A. D.

The aggressive policy towards Sunda in 1357 was merely
an indication of the strong imperialism which was to distinguish
the period of Eajasanagara. During the same year a military
expedition was sent against the island of Dornpo, which was
crowned with complete success. Although details of further
conquest are lacking, there is scarcely any doubt that during
the reign of this king the kingdom of Java rose to be the
supreme political power in the Archipelago, and established
its suzerainty in almost all the principal islands and a large
portion of the Malay Peninsula. It is not to be supposed,
however, that all these foreign possessions were directly
administered by, and formed part and parcel of the Javanese
kingdom. But the king of Majapahit was regarded as the

i. Berg B. K. I., Vol. 83. (1927), pp. 117-118.
42

330 THE JAVANESE EMPIRE

suzerain power by all of them, and his mighty fleet maintained
his hold upon their rulers, excluding effectually the active
exercise of any authority by other powers. The rulers of these
subordinate states owned allegiance to him and paid tributes
or other duos as agreed upon, although they were left free
and independent in matters of internal administration of their
states.

A detailed list of such subordinate states is given in the
Nag. Kr., which was composed in 1365 A. D., during the reign
of this king. It divides the states into several groups, and
we give their names below with such identifications of old
names as are generally agreed upon 1 (with approximate Degrees
of Latitudes and Longitudes indicated by the figures within
bracket. Where only the Latitudes and Longitudes are given,
it is to be understood that the name is also in use in modern
times. The letters S and N denote Southern and Northern
Latitudes).

Group L Malayu (Sumatra)

(I) Jiimbi(*2S.Xl04). (2) Palembang (3S.X103). (3) Kari-
tang (South of Indragiri) (1S.X102). (4) Tcba (upper Jambi)
(28. X 102). (5) Dharmasraya (upper Batanghari) (2S.X102).
(6) Kandis (Kandi, to the north of Buo on the right bank of
the Sinamar river. (IS. X 102). (7) Kahwas (Kawaj near
Kandi) (IS. X 101). (8) Manangkabwa (2S.Xl01)Minang-
kabau. (9) Rekan (IN. X 101). (10) Siyak (IN. X 102).
(11) Kfimpar (0X103). (12) Pane (Panai, at the mouth of
the Panai Barumun river (ON. X 100). (13) Kampe (Kompai)
(4N X 98). (14) Hani (Krom places it at about 4N. X 98. But
Ferrand locates it at the mouth of the river Rokan.)
(15) Mandahiling (IN. X 101). (16) Tamihang (4N.X98).
(17) Parllak (5N.X98). (18) Barat (Daya or west coast of

I. The identifications are .given on the authority of Krom
(Geschiedenis 2 , pp, 4*6-418), Brandcs (T. B. G., Vol. 58, 1919, p. 558),
Ferrand (J. A., 1918, 1919, 1922), and Blagden (J. R. A. S. 1928, p. 915).

SUVARNADVIPA 331

Atjeh) (5N. X 95). (19) Lavas (Padang Lavas or Gaju Luas)
(4.5X98). (20) Samudra (The Islamic kingdom of this name
was founded by Malik-al-saleh in the northern part of Sumatra
sometime before 1286 A. D.) (5N.X97'5). (21) Lamuri (in
Great Ajteh) (5N.X96). (22) Batan (Island to the south of
Singapore? or in Sumatra). (23) Lampung (5S.X105).
(24) Barns (2N.X98-5).

Group II. Tanjungnagara ( Borneo ).

(1) Kapuhas ( O x 112), v2) Katingan ( Mendavi river )
(3 8.x 114). (3) Sampit (3S.xll3). (4) Kuta Lingga
( Linga on the Batang Lupar ) (1-5. N.xlll) (5) Kuta
Varingin (3 S.xll2). (0) Sambas (1-5 N.X109- 5*).
(7) Lavai ( Muara Lavai on the Mendavak or Melavi )
(5 S.xim (8) Kadangdangan ( Kendavangan ) (3S.X116).
(9) Landa ( Landak ) '(-5 N.xllO). (10) Samedang

( Semandang in Simpang ? ) (11) Tircm ( Pcniraman on the
Kapuas Kechil or Tidung ) ( 4 N. x 116 ). (12) Sedu ( Sadong
in Saravak, Sedua in Langgou or Siduh in Matan ) (l-5Nx 111).
(13) Buruneng (Brunei) (5 N.xll5). (14) Kalka (Kaluka
near (?) Saribas (2 N.xlll). (15) Saludung (Maludu-bay)
(6 N.xllT). (16) Solot (Solokor Sulu island) (5N.xl20).
(17) Pasir (28. x 116). (18) Bantu. (:K>. S.x 115). (19) Savaka
(Sevaku island) (3-5S. x 116'5). (20) Tabalung (Tabalong in
Amuntui) (2-5S.X116). (21) Tuiijung Kutc (Kutci) (Ox 117).
(22) Malano (Malanau in N. \V. Borneo, Balinean in Scrawak,
or Milanau). (23) Taiijungpuri (the capital city.) (Tuiijungpura
on the south Pavan) (2 S. x 110).

Group HI Pahang (Malay Peninsula)

(Only Latitudes (N.) are given)

(1) Hujung-medinl, the capital city (Johor) (3*5). (2) Lengka-
suka (see pp. 71ff.) (3) Sai (Saiburi near Patarii) (10). (4) Kalan-
ten (5-5). (5) Tringgano (Trengganau) (5). (6) NaSor (Pahang
or Pat^ni). (7) Paka (on the east coast south of Dungun) (2 5).

332 THE JAVANESE EMPIRE

(8) Muvar (N. W. of Johor). (9) Dungun (South Trengganau)
(4). (10) Tumasik (Singapore). (11) Sanghyang Hujung (Cape
Rashado) (7). (12) Kelang (3-5). (13) Keda (6). (14) Jere
(Jering near Patani, or Keda peak or Jclei river) (6).
(15) KaSjap (Singkep ? ) (16) Niran (Karimun ?).

Group IV. Eastern Island.

(1) Bali with chief towns Bedahulu (Bedulu in Gianjar)
and Lvagajah (Goa Gaja near Petanu). (2) Gurun (Nusa
Penida) with chief town Sukun.

(3) Talivang. ]

(4) Dompo. I j Sumbawa .
(o) Sapi. f

(6) Bhima J

(7) Sanghyang Api (Sangeang, Gunung Api). (8) Seran
(Ceram). (9) Hutaii (N. E. of Sumbawa*. (10) Kadali
(Kanari island, or 9 and 10 together may denote the group
of islands Bum, Sula etc.) (11) Gurun (Gorong, probably
the name of a large group of islands in the east.) (12) Lombok
Mirah (West Lombok?) (13) Saksak (East Lombok).

(14) Bantayan (Bonthain) with capital of that name.

(15) Luvuk (Luvuk on south Peleng or Luvu on the gulf of
Boni). (16) Udamakatraya (Talaud islands). (17) Makasar.
and (18) Butun. (Two well-known islands of these names).
(19) Banggavl (Banggai). (20) Kimir (Kunjit). (21) Galiyao
(Kangean). (22) Salaya (Saleier). (23) Sumba (well-known).
(24) Solot (Solor). (25) Muar (Kei or Honimoa, Saparua).
(26) Wandan (Banda). (27) Ambwan (Amboyne Island).
(28) Maloko (Molukkas . e. Ternate). (29) Wwanin (Onin,
north-west of New Guinea). (30) Seran (Koviai, south of
New Guinea). (31) Timur (well-known).

These islands are all situated within that part of the
Pacific Ocean which is bounded by Borneo on the west,
Philippines on the north, New Guinea in the east, and Australia
on the south. They lie between Long. 115 arid 135, and
Lat. 2N. and 10S,

SUVARNADVlPA 333

The long list given in Nag, Kr. shows the hegemony of
nearly the whole of Malay Peninsula and Malay Archipelago
under the kingdom of Majapahit in Java, the only notable
xception being the Philippines. Roughly speaking, the empire
comprised the present Dutch possessions in the Archipelago,
with the addition of Malay Peninsula, but excluding, perhaps,
northern Celebes.

The question naturally arises, how far we can place reliance
on the statement in Nag. Kir. On the one hand it is a
contemporary authority giving full details of the external
possessions instead of indulging in mere vague general phrases
which is so often the case. On the other hand, we cannot
forget that the author, being associated with the court of
Majapahit, had a great natural inducement to exaggerate
the state of things in favour of his patron and country.

We must, thereforo, try to supplement the account of Nag.
Kr. by such other data as we possess. In the first place we
have a Malay book called Hikayat liajaraja Pasay 1 which
gives a long list of foreign territories under the supremacy
of Majapahit at the time of its conquest by the Muhammadans.
This list also refers to vassal states in Sumatra, Malay
Peninsula, Borneo, and the various islands in the Archipelago
such as Tambelan, Anamba, Natuna, Tiyuma, Karimata,
Biliton, Banka, Riouw, Lingga, Bintan, Banda, Cera, Sumbawa,
Lombok, Bali, and southern part of Celebes. As the two
lists emanate from two entirely different authorities living in
different countries, and the periods contemplated are separated
by a century, we cannot expect a complete agreement of
names in them. But the general resemblance between the
two is sufficient to establish the historical character of Nag. Kr.

Further, in respect of some of the conquered countries
in the above lists we possess independent evidence regarding
the suzerainty of Java.

i. An extract from this book is given by Dulaurier in J, A.
IV-VII, 1846, p. 544. The list of countries is given by Ferrand (Textes,
pp. 666-669).

334 THE JAVANESE EMPIRE

1. Bali. The inscription of Batur, dated 1348 A.D., and
a second record dated 1386 A.D. were issued by Sri Vijaya-
rajasa, i.e. the Prince of Vengker, the maternal uncle of king
Rsjasanagara. Another record, dated 1398 A.D., refers to this
prince as Sri Paramesvara who died at Visnubhavana. 1
There can be no doubt that the Prince of Vengker who held
an important position in the Javanese court ruled the island of
Bali as a representative of the Javanese king.

2. West Borneo. The Chinese history tells us that in
1 368 Pu-ni ( the western coast of Borneo ) was attacked by
the people of Su-lu, a neighbouring country. They made a
large booty and only retired when Java came with soldiers
to assist this country. 9 Now it can be easily presumed that
Java sent assistance as the suzerain authority bound to protect
a vassal state. The further accounts of the Chinese 3 make
it absolutely clear. We arc told that in 1370 the Chinese
emperor asked the king of Pu-ni to send tributes. Then the
Chinese authority adds : "Now this country had hitherto
belonged to Java and the people of the latter country tried to
prevent him". In other words, it is clearly admitted that
Java exercised supremacy over western Borneo in the year
1370 A.D. Although it is related that the king of Pu-ni
sent envoys with tribute to the imperial court, it does not
mean that Juva ceased to be regarded as the supreme authority.
For the despatch of envoy with tribute to China, as described
in Chinese history, is a mere conventional term which does
not always mean any real political relationship. For example,
Java herself is represented to be in a similar position with
regard to China during the same period.

3. San-fo-tsi. The relation of Java and San-fo-tsi has
already been discussed. According to the Chinese history
the king of San-fo-tsi, or rather one of the three kings who
divided the kingdom among themselves, died in 1376 A.D.,

I. O. V. 1924, p. 29 ; O. B., Vol. I, p. 191 ; Epigraphia Balica I,
p. 13. 2. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 103. 3. Ibid., pp. no-itj.

SDVARNADVIPA 335

and was succeeded by his son. Next year the latter sent
envoys with tributes to the imperial court. "The envoys
said that the sou dared not ascend the throne on his own
authority, and therefore asked the permission of the imperial
court. The emperor praised his sense of duty and ordered
envoys to bring him a seal and a commission as king of
San-fo-tsi. At that time, however, San-fo-tsi had already
been conquered by Java, and the king of this country, hearing
that the emperor had appointed a king over San-fo-tsi,
became very angry and sent men who waylaid and killed
the imperial envoys*. The emperor did not think it right to
punish him on this account. After this occurrence San-fo-tsi
became gradually poorer and no tribute was brought from
this country any more". 1

This very frank statement of the Chinese historian is a
singular proof of the political greatness of Java. It not only
admits the supremacy of Java over San-fo-tsi, but also proves
its will and ability to exclude other powers, including China,
from interfering in the political affairs of what she rightly
considered as her own sphere of influence. Further Chinese
testimony of the complete conquest of Saii-fo-tsi by Java has
been given before, in connection with the history of that
kingdom.

In addition to these positive testimonies furnished by the
Chinese historians, we may refer to indirect evidences, furnished
by two inscriptions. The rock-inscription of Palama* in
Sumbawa island is written in later Kavi alphabet, and its
language contains all sorts of old-Javanese forms. An inscrip-
tion at Singapore 1 also similarly exhibits the Javanese
alphabet and language. While no positive inference can be
made from these factors, they may be presumed to indicate the
political supremacy of Java over these two islands.

1. Ibid., p. 69. Ferrand J. A,, u : XX (1922), pp. 25-26.

2. Not. Hat. Gen., 1910, pp. 110-113.

3. B. K. I , Vol. 77 (1921), pp. 35-67 ; O. V. 1924, p. in.

336 THE JAVANESE EMPIRE

From all these indications it may be safely laid down that
by the year 1365 AD., when the Nagara Krtagama was com-
posed, Java reached the height of her political greatness and
established her unquestioned supremacy over Malay Peninsula
and Malay Archipelago. She also occupied a position of inter-
national importance. The Nag. Kr. refers to the intimate and
friendly intercourse of Majapahit with the neighbouring states
such as Siam, with Ayodhyilpura (Ayutbiya) and Dharmanagari
(Ligor), Martaban, Rajapura, Singhanagari, Champa (Southern
Anuam), Kamboja (Cambodia \ and Yavana(N. Annam). 1

It also refers to a number of countries, including some of
those just mentioned, which had trade relations with Majapahit,
and from which Brahmanas and Sramanas visited the Javanese
capital. Thus we read : "There came unceasingly, in large
numbers, people from all lands such as Jambudvlpa, Kamboja,
Clna, Yavana, Campa, Karnataka,...Gaudu, and Siam. They
came in ships with merchandise. Monks and distinguished
Brahmanas also came from these lands and were entertained". 9
Jambudvlpa, of course, refers to India, while Karnataka and
Gauda are specifically mentioned, probably to indicate a closer
intimacy with Bengal and Kanarcse districts. The Javanese
had indeed a high regard for India, for in one vei'-se (83 : 2) Nag.
Kr. says that Jambudvlpa and Java are the good lands par
excellence. The intimate relation between the two countries
is also indicated by the fact that laudatory poems in honour of
the Javanese king were written by the monk Budhaditya of
KaScI (Conjeeveram) and the Brahmana, named Mutali
Sahrdaya, probably a Tamil Brahmana. 8 The intercourse
with China, referred to by Nag. Kr., is also proved by Chinese
sources. The History of the Ming Dynasty* refers to

1. Nag. Kr., 15 : i. The identifications are made by Kern (V. G.,
VII. 279). Rajapura and Singhanagari cannot be definitely located.

2. Nag. Kr., 83 : 4- (V. G., VIII, p. 96).

3. Nag. Kr., 93 : i. (V. G., VIII, pp. 114-115).

4. Groeneveldt Notes, pp. 34!!.

SUVAKNADVIPA 337

embassies from Java in 1369, 1370, 1372, 1375, 1377, 1379, 1380,
1381, and 1382. We have already seen above, how Java gave
a serious provocation to the Chinese emperor in 1379 or 1380
by the murder of Chinese envoys. The event is thus referred
to in the history of the Ming Dynasty in connection with the
Javanese embassy of 1380 : "Some time before, imperial envoys
had been sent to carry a seal to the king of San-fo-tsi, and those
of Java deluded and killed them ; the emperor was highly
incensed and detained their envoys more than a month, with
the intention to punish them, but ultimately they were sent back
with a letter to their king in which he was reproved for what
he had done." Evidently the matter was amicably settled, for
we hear of envoys being sent from Java in the two following
years.

It thus appears from all accounts that the reign of Rajasa-
nagara witnessed the high-water mark of the power and glory
of Java. In view of the increase in power and responsibility
of the empire we find a thorough organisation of the adminis-
trative machinery to cope with the new and heavy task.
There is hardly any doubt that the credit for this to a large
extent belongs to Gajah Mada. He had risen from an humble
position to bo the chief minister of the empire and brought to
his task an unusual degree of devotion and skill. Next to him
we should mention the father and the maternal uncle of the
king, both of whom took an active and important part in the
administration. When Gajah Mada died in 1364 no other chief
minister was appointed as his successor. The king, his father,
mother, uncle, aunt, and his two sisters (Bhatara Sapta Prabhu)
with their husbands formed a sort of inner royal council which
kept the chief direction of affairs in its hands. This was an
indirect tribute to the great qualities of Gajah Mada in which-
ever way we look at it, whether it was difficult to get a worthy
successor of Gajah Mada, or whether it was thought too risky
to leave so large powers in the hands of one officer. Accord-
ingly his work was entrusted to four (or six) different persons.
Gajah Mada's name is also associated with a book on polity
43

338 THE JAVANESE EMPIRE

(Kut&ramanava) which, in spite of later additions and alterations,
may be rightly ascribed to that great minister.

In 1371, however, we find a new Prime Minister appointed.
This was Gajah Enggon, who served for the remaining eighteen
years of Rajasanagara's reign, and continued in the post under
the next king till his death in 1398.

Chapter VII.
DOWNFALL OF THE EMPIRE

King Rajasanagara had a long and prosperous reign, and
under him, as stated above, Majapahit became the seat of a
vast empire. But he took an unwise step in his old age which
was mainly instrumental in pulling down the vast imperial
fabric reared up with so much care. In order to understand
this fully we must have an idea of the royal family. The king
had by his chief queen ParameSvari only a daughter named
Kusumavarddhani. The queen's sister, I^varl, called princess
of Pajang, had one daughter, called Nagaravarddhani princess
of Virabhumi, and a son called Vikramavarddhana, prince of
Mataram. Vikramavarddhana was married to the crown-
princess Kusumavarddhani, and was thus the next heir to the
throne. But king Rajasanagara had also a son by a junior wife.
In order to settle him well in life, the king had him married
to Nagaravarddhani. He thus became prince of VirabhOmi
and was adopted by the princess of Daha. In order to
strengthen his position still further the king made him governor
of the eastern part of Java. Although nominally under the
authority of Majapahit, the prince of Vlrabhumi really exercised
almost independent powers, so much so that the Chinese annals
refer to two kings in Java even during the lifetime of king
Rajasanagara, and both of them sent envoys to the imperial
court 1 . Thus were sown the seeds o a future civil war which
was destined to pave the way for the final overthrow, not only
of the kingdom of Majapahit, but also of the Hindu kingdom
and Hindu culture of Java.

Bang Rajasanagara died in 1389 A.D. and Vikramavarddhana,
also known as Hyang Viea, succeeded him at Majapahit.

I, Groeneyeldt Notes, p. 35.

340 DOWNFALL OF THE EMPIRE

The latter had a son by the crown-princess who was called,
after his royal grandfather, Hyang Wekas ing Sukha. Being
a direct descendant of Rajasanagara the crown-prince held a
position of great importance. He appointed a new Prime
Minister Gajah Manguri in 1398. But next year the crown-
prince died at Indrabhavana and was cremated at the temple of
Parama Sukhapura at Tajung. 1 Due to this shock or for some
other reason the king took to a religious life in 1400 A.D.

The actual expression used in the record is that king
Vikramavarddhana became a "Bhagavan." Brandes translated
this word as 'monk' and held that the 'king withdrew from
worldly life and government/ But the example of Airlangga
shows that a king can continue to exercise temporal authority
even though he adopts a religious life. There is no doubt,
however, that both according to Pararaton and Chinese
accounts, Vikramavarddhana exercised royal powers at a
subsequent date. Brandes tried to explain away this cir-
cumstance by supposing that under pressure of circumstances
the king subsequently returned to the worldly life. But of
this change there is no evidence whatsoever.

Pararaton next ( Chap. XII ) refers to one "Bhatara istri
Prabhu" i.e., a female sovereign. A few lines before this
( Chap. X ) the chronicle refers to Devi Suhita, the daughter
of king Vikramavarddhana, as 'Prabhu istri/ Then, a few lines
later ( Chap. XII ), it refers to the death of king Vikrama-
varddhana. This is immediately followed by the statement
that Prabhu istri died in 1429 ( Chap. XII ). Nothing is said
about the succession to the throne, but Bhre Daha is said to be
ruler ( ratu ) in 1437 A.D. ( Chap. XIII ). Lastly it is noted
that 'Prabhu istri' died in 1447 and was cremated at Singhajaya
( Chap. XIII ).

This somewhat confusing account has led to differences
among scholars regarding the reconstruction of the history

I. Krom thinks that king Rajasanagara was also cremated there,
but of this we have qo evidence.

SUVARNADVlPA 341

of the period. Brandes held the view that after the abdication
of Vikramavarddhana Suhita ruled from 1400 to 1429 A.D.,
probably jointly with his father for a part of this period.
After the death of both in 1429 A.D., there was an interregnum
from 1429 to 1437, and thereafter a queen, Bhre Daha, ruled
from 1437 to 1447 A.D. Krom has pointed out several defects
in this interpretation. In the first place, there is no reference
to any interregnum, and secondly, the title *prabhu' is applied
to the ruler of Majapahit whereas Bhre Daha is called only a
'ratu/ Krom himself has given a new interpretation. He
begins by pointing out that Singhajaya, the cremation place of
'Prabhu istri' in 1447, is also, according to Par., the cremation
place of SuhitiVs husband who died a year before ( Chap. XII ).
From this fact he concludes that this 'Prabhu istri' who died
in 1447 is no other than Suhita herself.

Starting from this basis Krom offers a simple explanation.
He assumes that Vikramavarddhana continued to rule till 1429,
when, after his death, his daughter Suhita ascended the throne
and ruled till her death in 1447 A.D. Bhre Daha is regarded
by Krom as merely a ruler of Daha having no connection with
Majapahit. 1

Krom's reconstruction is open to serious objection, as it
ignores two clear statements in Chap. XII of the Pararaton,
viz., (1) BhatSra istri became ruler in 1400 A.D., and (2) Prabhu
istri died in 1429 A.D.

Fortunately, we have got two statements by the Chinese
authorities which enable us to check the accounts of Pararaton,
and, perhaps, to understand it aright. The History of the
Ming Dynasty says that in 1415 A.D. the king of Java gave
up his old name and adopted the new name Yang Wi-si-sa,
and from another Chinese source we come to know that this
king was ruling in Java in 1436 A. D. 9 There is no doubt that

i. For a full discussion on this point, cf. Krom Geschiedenis a ,
pp. 428ff.

3. Groeneveldt. Notes, p. 37. T'oung Pao, 1934, pp. 3Qi-2 f

342 DOWNFALL OF THE EMPIRE

the Chinese name corresponds to Hyang Vifiesa, the second
name of king Vikramavarddhana.

We should, therefore, dismiss from our mind the idea that
king Vikramavarddhana died in 1429 A.D. As a matter of fact
this is nowhere stated in Pararaton. The relevant passages of
Pararaton are cited below (marked A, B, etc.) with a view to
arrive at a definite idea of the whole situation.

Chap. XL A. Bhra Hyang ViSesa became bhagavan i.e.

withdrew from state-aifairs in Saka 1322.
Chap. XII. B. Bhafara istri became ruler (prabhu).

C. Bhra Hyang ViSesa died...

D. Prabhu istri died in 1351.

Chap. XIII. E. Bhre Daha became ruler (ratu) in Saka 1359.

F. Bhre Prabhu istri died in Saka 1369.
Chap. XIV. G. Thereupon Bhre Tumapel became king in
her place.

Now from the statements A and B we are bound to conclude
that Bhre Hyang Viesa abdicated the throne in favour of
Prabhu istri. Now this title was obviously applied to two
persons who died respectively in 1351 (D) and 1369 (F), and
probably they were the queen and daughter of king Hyang
Viesa. The abdication was, therefore, in favour of one of
these two, probably the former. It was, however, only for a
short period. The Chinese accounts show that the king was
ruling in 1415 AD., and the Pararaton also records his
activities in connection with the civil war in 1404 A.D. An
inscription, issued by His Majesty Bhatara Hyang ViSesa, also
supports the same conclusion, as the record was obviously later
than 1415 A.D. when he assumed this name. 1 The assumption
of a new name in 1415 might indicate that, though actively
looking to the affairs of the state all along, he formally resumed
his sovereignty only in that year ; but this is not certain. In
any case Hyang Visesa resumed the sovereignty in or before
1415 A.D., and ruled till 1436 A.D., as the Chinese authorities

l, Q. V. 1918, p. 171.

SUVARNADVlPA 343

inform us. This is in a way corroborated by the statement in
Pararaton that Bhre Daha became ruler in 1437 A.D. (E)
Evidently that was the year when Hyang ViSesa died. Bhre
Daha probably ruled from 1437 to 1447 when on her death
Bhre Tumapel became king.

The sentence G immediately follows F, and consequently
the expression 'thereupon* should be taken to indicate that
the accession of Tumapel was contingent upon the death of
Bhre Prabhu istri, or, in other words, the former succeeded
the latter. On the other hand, the only person whose accession
is referred to after 1436 A. D. is Bhre Daha, and not
Bhre Prabhu istri. Thus the three sentences E. F. G., read
together, might lead us to believe that Bhre Daha and
Prabhu istri probably referred to the same person, viz.,
Suhita, the daughter of Hyang Visesa, but of this we are
not certain. It is equally possible to hold with Krom,
that Bhre Daha was a local ruler, and in that case Suhita
ascended the throne after her father's death in 1430 A. D.,
though neither this incident nor the date thereof is mentioned
in Pararaton. Bhre Daha might also be a rebel or a rival to
Suhita, and there is nothing surprising in it, as the reign of
Vikramavarddhana is marked by the great Civil War which
led to the disruption of the empire and ultimately to the
downfall of the kingdom of Majapahit.

It has already been mentioned that prince Vlrabhumi was
ruling like an independent prince in Eastern Java even during
the lifetime of Rajasanagara. The following passage appears
in the History of the Ming Dynasty between the accounts of
the embassies in the years 1377 and 1379 A. D. "In this
country there is a western and an eastern king, the latter is
called Bogindo Bongkit, and the former Bu-la-po-bu (Bhatara
Prabhu). Both of them sent envoys with tribute" 1

This account refers apparently to about 1378 A. D.,
when Rajasanagara was still living. It may be easily presumed

I. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 35. Cf. also Ferrand's notes, Par. p.i64.

344 DOWNFALL OF THE EMPIRE

that the relation between the two states did not improve after
the death of that king. The Chinese history tells us that in
1403 both the kings sent tribute and obtained royal seals
from the Chinese emperor ; and thenceforward both the
kings regularly sent tribute 1 . This shows that both of them
tried to get recognition from the Chinese emperor. The
Chinese history informs us that in 1406 the eastern king was
defeated and his kingdom destroyed. 8 We get a more detailed
account of the struggle in Pararaton (Chap. XII). It appears
that as early as 1401 A. D. king Vikramavarddhana was
involved in a fight with prince Virabhumi, but the result was
indecisive. War broke out again in 1404 or shortly before that.
At first the fortune of war turned against Vikramavarddhana,
and he decided to retire. But then the two powerful chiefs
of Java, Bhre Tumapel, and Bhra Paramefivara, son and son-
in-law respectively of the king, came to his aid, though they
had at first stood aloof. Tliis proved decisive. Prince Virabhumi
was defeated and fled during night in a ship. He was, however,
caught and put to death, and his head was brought to Majapahit
in 1406 A. D.

A side-issue of this episode brought the conquering Javanese
king into troubles with the Chinese Court. The incident is thus
described in the History of the Ming Dynasty. 3

"In the year 1405 the eunuch Cheng Ho was sent as a me-
ssenger to this country, and in the next year the two kings
made war upon each other ; the eastern king was defeated and
his kingdom destroyed. At that time the imperial envoys
were just in the country of the eastern king, and when the
soldiers of the western king entered the market place, 170 of
their followers were killed by these ; on this the western king
became afraid and sent envoys to ask pardon. The Emperor
gave them an edict reproving him severely and ordered him to
pay sixty thousand taels of gold as a fine. In the year 1408
Cheng Ho was sent again to this country and the western

I. Ibid, p. 36, 2. Ibid, p. 36. 3. Ibid, pp. 3^-37-

SUVARNADVIPA 345

king presented ten thousand thails of gold ; the officers of the
Board of Rites observed that the amount was not complete
and wanted to imprison the envoys who brought it, but the
Emperor said : "What I want from those people who live far
away, is that they acknowledge their guilt, but I do not want
to enrich myself with their gold," and on this he remitted the
whole fine. From this time they brought tribute continually,
sometimes once in two years and sometimes more than once a
year, and the eunuchs Wu-pin and Cheng Ho visited their
country repeatedly."

The defeat and death of the Prince of Vlrabhumi once
more restored the unity of Java. But the internal dissensions
for nearly a quarter of a century, ending in a disastrous
civil war, must have taxed to the utmost the military and
financial resources of the country and left her weak and
exhausted. Its first fruits were seen in the loss of that political
supremacy which Java had secured in the Archipelago and
Malay Peninsula. Her position as suzerain power now passed
over to China, and gradually new kingdoms and commercial
centres arose which were destined to overwhelm Java herself
at no distant date.

With the beginning of the fifteenth century A.D. we can
clearly perceive the decline of Java, as an international power.
This can be best understood by reviewing the position of a
few kingdoms which had acknowledged the supremacy of
Java in the middle of the fourteenth century A.D.

1. West Borneo (Pu-ni).

We have already described the relations of this country
with Java. In 1370 the king of Pu-ni at first did not dare
to send even an envoy to China for fear of Java. But we read
in the history of the Ming Dynasty 1 that iu 1405 he not only
got investiture as king from the hands of the Chinese emperor,

i. Ibid, pp. 111-3,

346 DOWNFALL OF THE EMPIRE

but even went with his whole family to China to pay respects
to the emperor. The next king reported to the emperor that
'his country had to give Java forty caties camphor baros
every year and begged an imperial order to Java that this
annual tribute should be stopped in order that it might be sent
instead to the imperial court'. The emperor accordingly
"gave an order to Java telling them not to ask any more the
annual tribute of this country". We further read that the
late king of Pu-ni represented to the emperor in 1405 A.D.,
that his country was now altogether subject to the imperial
government. Henceforth the kings of Pu-ni sent regular
tributes to the imperial court, and some time even personally
attended the court with their family. (See infra Bk. IV.,
Chap. IV).

2. San-fo-tsi

The same Chinese history tells us 1 that although Java had
completely conquered San-fo-tsi he could not keep all the
lands. Two states were established there with two Chinese
adventurers at their head. Although they nominally admitted
the suzerainty of Java, they sent regular tributes and envoys
to the imperial court. Then they ceased to care either for
Java or for China. It is interesting to note that in 1397 the
Chinese emperor dared not send envoys direct to Java for fear
that they will be waylaid by San-fo-tsi, and hence he approached
Siam as an intermediary to carry his message to Java so that she
might warn San-fo-tsi. Thus China recognised at least the
nominal suzerainty of Java over San-fo-tsi. In 1405 and
succeeding years, however, there were regular changes of
embassies between China and San-fo-tsi, without any reference
to Java. In 1424 a king of San-fo-tsi even asked permission
of the emperor to succeed his father. It is evident that from
the beginning of the fifteenth century A.D. Java exercised
but little real authority in that country.

i. Ibid, p. 71.

SUVARNADVlPA 347

3. Sumatra

Samudra, one of the vassal states of Java, became a strong
Islamic power, and a powerful centre of trade and commerce.
Its Sultan sent envoys and tribute to the imperial court in
1405 and was named by the emperor 'king of Samudra/ 1 In 1412
the Muhammadan king of Lambri, another vassal state of
Java, sent envoys with tribute to China. "The envoys were
presented with court dresses, and the king got a seal, a
commission and silks, whilst Cheng Ho was sent to carry the
instructions of the emperor to that country. Till 1424, they
sent tribute every year." 1

4. Malay Peninsula

Various states in Malay Peninsula such as Pahang and
Kelantan now sent tributes to China (infra, Bk. IV. Chap. II).
But the most important of them was the Muhammadan king
doin of Malacca. This powerful state sought the protection
of China against Siam, and in 1405 its king received investiture
from the Chinese emperor. 8 Gradually this state grew to be
a great rival of Java as would appear from the following
passage in the History of the Ming Dynasty.

"At that time Palembang was under the domination of Java
and the king of Malacca falsely pretended that he had an order
from the emperor to claim this possession. When the emperor
heard this, he gave an edict saying : "When lately the eunuch
Wu-pin came back he reported that you (king of Java) had
treated the imperial envoys in the most respectful way ; now
I have heard lately that the king of Malacca has claimed the
country Palembang from you and that you have been very much
astonished, hearing that this was my will : but I treat people
in the most upright way and if I had allowed him to do so, I
certainly would have sent an open order, therefore you have no
reason to be afraid and if bad men make use of false pretences,
you must not lightly believe them".*
I. Ibid, p. 89. a. ibid, p. 99. 3. Ibid, p, 129. 4. Ibid, p. 37.

348 DOWNFALL OF THE EMPIRE

This passage shows in a remarkable manner the change in
the position of Java as an international power. The new state
of Malacca openly hurls defiance at Java and feels powerful
enough to wrest Palembang from her. The Chinese emperor
appears on the stage as patron and saviour of Java. The very
fact that the king of Malacca pretended to have an order from
the Chinese emperor shows the position of China in the affairs
of the Archipelago. Everything indicates that China is now
by common consent the recognised suzerain, and although the
emperor wants to assert his authority over Java he does not
like another power like Malacca to occupy the position which
Java lately did.

Java silently acquiesced in the new r&le of China and
accommodated herself to the changed state of things. The
episode of 1406 has been related above. In 1415 king Vikrama-
varddhana sent envoys to thank the emperor for his kindness
(evidently shown by thwarting the designs of Malacca) and to
bring as tribute products of the land. 1 In this connection the
Chinese historian tells us that the king (Vikramavarddhana)
adopted the name Yang Wi-si-sa, the Chinese form of the name
Hyang Visesa which we meet with in Javanese records.

The cordial relations between Java and the imperial court
continued after 1415, as we can easily conclude from the
following passage of the History of the Ming Dynasty 8 .

"About that time (1415 A.D.) some followers of the Imperial
envoys had been driven by a storm to the country Pantsur, and
a Javanese, hearing this, paid a ransom for them and brought
them to the place where the king lived. In the year 1418 the
king sent envoys with tribute to the court and sent these men
back at the same time ; the emperor praised the king in an
edict and sent also presents to the Javanese who had rescued
them.... The Javanese embassy again brought tribute in the
year 1432 and presented a letter stating that their state was
founded 1376 years ago....

i, Ibid, p. 37. 2. Ibid, p. 37.

SUVARNADVlPA 349

"In the year 1436 the imperial envoy Ma Yung-lang
presented a memorial to the emperor, saying that the former
Javanese envoy Pa-ti, on coming to court, had got a silver
girdle, and as the present envoy, A-liet, 1 was a man of the
fourth rank, he requested a golden girdle for him ; his request
was granted.

"In the intercalary sixth month of the same year the envoys
of Calicut, Northern Sumatra, Cochin, Arabia, Gail, Aden,
Hormus, Dsahffar, Comari, and Cambodja were sent back
together with the envoys of Java and the emperor gave a letter
to the king of this country 9 of the following contents.

"You, oh king ! have never been remiss in performing
the duty of sending tribute in the time of my ancestors and now
that I have come to the throne, you have again sent envoys to
court ; I am fully convinced of your sincerity. Now, in the
reign of my predecessor (1426-35) Calicut and ten other
countries have come to bring tribute, and as your envoys are
going home, I have ordered those other envoys to go with
them. I expect you will treat them kindly and send them back
to their respective countries, in order to carry out my benevolent
intentions towards those who live far away.

"In the year 1440 envoys who were going home, were
shipwrecked by a storm, fifty-six men were drowned and
eighty-three saved. They came back to Canton and the emperor
gave orders to the authorities to provide for them, until there
should be a ship in which they could go home.

i. Pelliot corrects this as 'Ya-lie' and regards it as the shortened
form of 'Ya-lie-ya-cho', the name of the Javanese ambassador to
China in 1436 (Toung Pao, 1934, p. 299). Pelliot further points out
that two more embassies were sent from Java to China in 1436,
and that Ma Yung-lang was probably a Javanese ambassador, and not
an imperial envoy, as Groeneveldt supposes (Ibid).

a. The name of this king is "Yang-wei-si-cha" i.e. Hyang Vis*ea,
according to a Chinese authority quoted by Pelliot (T'oung Pao, 1934,
p. 301). Pelliot further points out that Groeneveldt has, through inadver-
tence, omitted the name of Ceylon in the list of countries (Ibid, p, 302).

350 DOWNFALL OF THE EMPIRE

"In the year 1443 the Governor of Canton presented a
memorial pointing out that the continual tribute of Java
caused great expenses and trouble, and that it was no good plan
to injure China in order to benefit those distant people. The
Emperor adopted his views and when the envoys of that country
went back, he gave them a letter saying : "The different
countries over the sea shall all bring tribute once in three
years ; you, oh king, must also have compassion with your
people and observe this arrangement."

"In the year 1446 they brought again tribute, but afterwards
it became gradually more rare".

The reign of Vikramavarddhana or Hyang ViSesa was
thus inglorious both at home and abroad. In addition to the
disastrous civil war, Java suffered terribly from a volcanic
eruption in 1411 and a great famine in 1426. A new Prime
Minister, Kanaka, carried on the government from 1413 to 1430.
Like Gajah Mada, his name is associated with a law-book, the
idigama. The king died in or shortly before 1429 A.D. and
found his last resting place at ParamaviSesapura at Lalangon,
probably the same as Visesapura at Bhayalango, the cremation
place of his great-grandmother Rajapatnl.

After the death of Vikramavarddhana probably his daughter
Suhita ascended the throne, as noted above. She thus
superseded her two brothers, both called Bhre Tumapel. This
was presumably due to her high rank on the mother's side, and
as we know that Vikramavarddhana married the daughter of
Prince Vlrabhumi and Nagaravardhani, we may easily presume
this lady to be the mother of Suhita. Her accession to the
throne was probably the result, to a certain extent, of the
triumph of the party of that unfortunate prince. A significant
indication of that is to be found in the express statement in
Pararaton ( Ch. XIII ) that Raden Gajah was dismissed in
1433 A.D. because he had killed prince VlrabhQmi.

We know of no important events during the reign of
She died childless in 1447 A.D. $ud was cremated

SUVAHNADVIPA 351

at Singhajaya, where her husband found his last resting place
the year before.

She was succeeded by Bhre Tumapel, probably the younger
of her two brothers of that name. The king was called Sri
Krtavijaya, and died after an uneventful reign of four years
(1451 A.D.). He was cremated at Krtavijayapura. There were
two volcanic eruptions during his reign.

The events immediately following the death of the king
are not quite clearly intelligible from the account of Pararaton.
We read that one Bhre Pamotan succeeded at Keling
Kahuripan, under the name Sri Rajasavardhana. This is
followed by the statement that Sinagara died in 1453, and
there was no ruler for the next three years. It would thus
appear that Rajasavardhana was the same as Sinagara. But
then the mention of Keling, perhaps in north-western part of
Kediri, is obscure. Does it mean that the king did not rule
in Majapahit? The relationship of the king with his
predecessor is also not known. According to the Chinese
History the "King Prabu (of Java) sent envoys to court with
tribute in 1452". l Perhaps this king Prabu is to be
identified with Rajasavardhana.

After the interregnum of three years, Bhre Vengker ascended
the throne in 1456 A.D., under the name Bhra Hyang Parva-
ViSesa. During his reign the Chinese history refers to two
embassies from Java to the imperial court, one in 1460, and
the other in 1465. In connection with the first the name of
the king of Java is given as Tu-ma-pan. 9 The king died in
1466 A.D. and was cremated at Puri.

The next king, according to Pararaton, was Bhre Pandan
Salas, who ruled for two years at Tumapel (1466-68 A.D.)
and then left the capital. Pararaton concludes his account
of kings by referring to four sons of Sinagara (i.e. king
Rajasavardhana), the youngest of whom Bhra Krtabhumi is

i. Ibid, p. 39.

s . Ibid, p, 39. Tum-ma-pan may stand for Tumapel or Easter* Java.

352 DOWNFALL OF THE EMPIRE

said to be "the uncle of the king who was cremated in the
palace in 1478."

The preceding account of Pararaton about the closing
period of the history of Majapahit can hardly be accepted
as accurate. Its unreliable character is easily demonstrated by
a copperplate found at Sendang Sedati, south of Bnjanegara. 1
The record was issued in 1473 A.D. by His Majesty Bhatara
Prabhu, whose personal name was Suraprabhava, and the
coronation name, Singhavikramavardhana. We can easily
identify him with the person, bearing both these names, whom
we meet with in Trabulan inscription 8 , not as the ruling
king, but as prince of Tumapel, the youngest son of His
Majesty, and husband of Rajasavardhanadevl, princess of
Singhapura. Now, according to Par., Blire Pandan Salas
ascended the throne at Tumapel in 1466, and the same
chronicle also refers (Chap. X) to a person of the same
name as the husband of Bhre Singhapura. Dr. M. A. Muusses,
therefore, suggests that king 'Singhavikramavardhana of the
inscription is the same as Bhre Pandan Salas of Pararaton. 3
But the Pararaton definitely puts the end of Salas' reign at
Tumapel in 1468, whereas the Sendang Sedati inscription is
dated in 1473. We may explain this discrepancy by supposing
either that the dates given in Par. are wrong, or that the
king issued the record after leaving Tumapel.

Krom, however, offers a new view. He takes the
concluding passage of Pararaton, quoted above, to mean that
Bhra Krtabhumi, the youngest of the four sons of Sinagara,
was the king who ascended the throne in 1468, and died
in 1478. He then identifies Singhavikramavardhana, referred
to in the Trabulan inscription as "the youngest son of His

1. O. V. 1922, pp. 22-27-

2. O. V. 1918, p. 170. The record has been referred to the
time of Vikramavarddhana, (Ibid, 1919* pp. 22-30, 153-155), but more
likely belongs to the period between 1447 and 1466 (Ibid, 1923, p. 109).

3. Feest. Bat. Gen., Vol. II (1929), PP 207-214,

SUVARNADVIPA 353

Majesty", with this Kj-tabhami 1 Whatever we may think of
these different views, it is interesting to note that in the copper-
plate of 1473 A.D. king Singhavikramavardhana is referred to
as the sole mler of Yavabumi, comprising the two kingdoms
of Janggala and Kadiri. How far this claim was justified,
there is no means to determine. The probability, howevei',
is that the kingdom of Majapahit had lost its position of
supremacy, even in Java, and already showed alarming
symptoms of final dissolution which was not long in coming.

The year 1478 A. D., the last year for which any political
event is recorded in Pararaton, was an eventful one according
to the Javanese tradition, for it was in that year that the
Muhammadaris conquered Majapahit and destroyed the Hindu
kingdom in Java 2 . That this tradition is not quite correct
appears from the fact that several inscriptions, dated I486 A. D.,
refer to a Hindu king, and Portuguese accounts of a later date
also refer to Hindu kings in Java. But the inscriptions
themselves indicate clearly that the king who issued them fought
against Majapahit. The tradition may thus be correct to the
extent that the fall of Majapahit took place in 1478 (or 1481 A.D.
according to another version of the tradition), but then it was
brought about, not by the Muhammadan conquerors, who came
much later, but by a rival Hindu dynasty. Thus the overthrow
of Majapahit in 1478 A.D. by a Hindu king and the establish-
ment of Muslim authority at a later date have been confused
together in the local tradition. It is, of course, quite conceivable
that the Muhammadans had conquered Majapahit even as early
as 1478 (or 1481), but then it was not followed by any serious
result, and a new Hindu dynasty soon took the place of the old.

The stone inscriptions of 1486 all belong to the same group 8 ,
and were found in Dukuhan Dukuh (in Surabaya) and Jiju near

1. Krom Geschiedenis 2 , p. 449.

2. According to some versions of the tradition, the date is
A. D. 1481 ; cf. B.K.I., 1899. P- H7-

3. O.J.O., Nos. XCI-XCV. For a general account of the inscrip-
tions cf. Introductory remarks to No. XCI.

45

354 DOWNFALL OF THE EMPIRE

Majasari. They were issued by a king whose proper name was
Ranavijaya, but who had the titles Bhatara Prabhu Girlndravar-
dhana and fought against Majapahit. One of the inscriptions
refers to the gift made to the priest after the completion of
the twelve-year Sraddha of His Majesty the prince of Dahana-
pura who died at Indrabhavana. This shows that the king
belonged to the dynasty of Daha and his father (at least
predecessor) died twelve years ago i.e. in 1474 A.D. Now
Pararaton tells us, as already stated above, that Bhre Daha
became king (ratu) in 1437 A. D, and died in 1464 A. D. If we
consider this last date a mistake for 1474 A. D., we can identify
this ratu Daha with the predecessor of Ranavijaya. Dr. Muusses,
however, offers an altogether new solution. As already noted
above, he identifies Singhavikramavardhana with Bhre Pandan
Salas, and then provisionally reconstructs the following history :
"Sinagara made himself master in 1451. After his death in
1453 anarchy for three years followed. After Hyang PtirvaviSe-
sa's death Bhre Pandan Salas became Prabhu, but he was forced
to leave the Kraton two years later (1468). He betook himself
to Kadiri where he issued the record of Sendang Sedati (1473).
One year after its publication lie died ( 1474 ) and then
there was a struggle among his sons for the throne. Ultimately
Ranavijaya came out successful in 1478. In 1486 he felt his
position secure enough to offer a sacrifice in honour of his
father who died twelve years ago" 1 .

Whatever we may think of this, there is no doubt that Rana-
vijaya, king of Daha, overthrew Majapahit and made himself
king of Java. He is referred to in the inscriptions as king of Sri
Vilvatikta, Daha, Janggala and Kadiri. This wording is some-
what curious, as Kadiri and Daha denote the same kingdom.
The explanation of the singular phrase perhaps lies in the fact
that Janggala and Kadiri were the conventional official names of
the two parts of the kingdom of Java to which the king added
the names of Vilvatikta ( Majapahit ) and Daha, the two real
component parts of his newly established kingdom.

I. Feest. Bat. Gen., Vol. II, pp. 207-214.

SUVARNADVlPA 355

The inscriptions also refer to another member of the royal
family, called Girlndravardhana, with personal name Vijayaku-
suma, and the royal name Singhavardhana. But as he is called,
not Prabhu, but only Bhatara of Kling, he occupied probably
only a lower position. The inscriptions mention that the priest
Brahmaraja Ganggadhara, who performed the twelve-year
Sraddha, was well versed in the four Vedas. They also refer
to the consecration of the images of Rama and Rsi Bharadvaja
and also to worship of Rama, Visnu, Yama, and Durga, thus
leaving no doubt that the royal dynasty was purely Hindu.

Girlndravardhana Ranavijaya is the last Hindu king of
Eastern Java about whom we possess any authentic details.
But the Hindu kingdom continued there for 30 or 40 years
more before it was finally conquered by the Muhammadans, as
we shall see in a later chapter. The last Javanese embassy
to China was sent in 1499 A. D. 1 .

j. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 39.

Chapter VIII

SUNDA

Before we proceed to discuss the Muhammadan conquest
of Java, we must go back to the history of the Hindu kingdom
in the western part of the island, r?*., Sunda. We have seen
above (Bk I. Chap. VI) that the Hindu culture and political
authority in Java had its beginning in this region. But, since
the days of PQrnavarman, our knowledge of the history of this
region is very meagre. The existence, however, of Hindu
culture and Hindu society in this region, in the tenth century
A.D., is proved by an inscription found at Kebon Kopi 1 . A
more definite information is given by an inscription dated 1030
A.D., engraved on four stones found near Cibadak, above
Leuvi Kalabang 2 . It refers to the pious foundation of some
holy footprints by a king of Sunda called Sri Jayabhiipati
Jayamaiiahcn Visnumurtti Samaravijaya Sakalabhuvanamandale-
svaranindita ILiro Govardhana Vikramottunggadcva. The
record lays down regulations forbidding the capture of fish or
any other living being from the river within a defined area in
the neighbourhood. The imprecatory formula at the end
refers to Hara " Agasti, evidently a corruption of Haricandana
and Agastya of old Javanese inscriptions. The language and
script of the record are both old-Javanese. As the king is
expressly said to be the ruler of Sunda, there cannot be any

1. O.V. 1923, p. 18, No. 6888. The date was doubtfully read as 932
A. D., but even if this reading be not accepted, the palaeography of the
inscription refers it to the tenth century A. D. The contents of the
inscription cannot be fully made out.

2. T. B. G., Vol. 57 (1916), pp. 201-218. Pleyte's inference, from
the name and titles of the king, that he fought with Eastern Java and
was a predecessor of Airlangga, rests on too slender a basis (cf.
Geschiedenis, p. 259).

SUVARNADVlPA 357

doubt that it formed a separate kingdom independent of Eastern
Java, but it is equally clear that its culture and civilisation
was entirely Javanese in character. It may be mentioned here
that the inscription referred to above is the earliest document
containing the name of Sunda. Pleyte had discovered a pair
of footprints on a block of stone lying on the top of Perbakti,
north-west of Cicurug. It is locally known as Batu Tapak.
As Sanghyang Tapak is the name given in the inscription for
the pious foundation, the footprints referred to therein may
be those discovered by Pleyte.

It appears from the accounts of Chau Ju-kua that in the
r^n century A.D. Sunda was a dependency of San-fo-tsi.
1..* j ,re was a good harbour in the land. The people were also
given to agriculture and produced the best quality of pepper.
But as there was no regular system of government, and the
people were given to brigandage, foreign traders rarely went
there. 1

The Nag. Kr. includes Sunda among the vassal states of
Kytanagara. There is no independent evidence corroborating
this, and so we cannot be quite sure if Sunda really became a
dependency of the Eastern Javanese kingdom 8 . Such a transfer
of allegiance on the part of Sunda could only be due to the
decline of the power of San-fo-tsi and the gradual ascendancy
of Java as a great international power.

Similarly Pararaton includes Sunda among the conquests
of Gajah Mada during the regency of Tribhuvanottungadevl.
Here, again, the statement cannot be corroborated by any
other source.

Next in point of time is the tragic episode of A.D. 1357,
regarding the marriage of Rajasanagara with a Sundanese
princess which has been related above. The attitude of the
Sundanese king and nobles, as explained in the Pararaton,
negatives the idea that the king of Sunda regarded himself
as a vassal of Majapahit. The references in Nag. Kr. and

i. Chau Ju-kua, pp. 62, 70, 122,

?. Krom Geschiedenis, p. 335 Fruin-Mees ? p. u6,

358 SUNDA

Par. to the conquest of Sunda, respectively by Kytanagara and
Gajah Mada, also show that none of these conquests, even if it
be regarded as true, really led to any decisive result. Taking
all these things into consideration one is forced to the conclusion
that Sunda remained a separate kingdom during the century
1260-1360 A.D., and although its relations with Majapahit were
never friendly, it had not been a part of that empire, at least
for any length of time.

A stone inscription at Batu-Tulis 1 , to the south-east of
Buitenzorg, gives us some interesting information regarding
three generations of kings. The king, who issued the record,
was ruler of Pakwan Pajajaran. He had several names, Rtu
Purana, Prabhu Guru Devatasrana, and Sri Baduga Maharaja.
He is said to be Rata Devata who ruled in Pakwan. He was
the son of Rahyang Devaniskala, who died at Gunatiga, and
grandson of Rahyang Niskalavastu KaScana, who died at
Nusa Larang. The inscription records a number of pious
works of the king, and concludes with a date which is most
probably A.D. 1333.

The inscription thus testifies to the existence of the kingdom
of Pakwan Pajajaran as early as fourteenth century A.D.
This kingdom in West Java continued down to the time of the
advent of the Europeans, and is referred to in their reports. The
ruins of Pakwan in the neighbourhood of Batu-Tulis, have been
explored and described by Pleyte.* He has traced the ruins
of the walls surrounding the Kraton (palace) on three sides.
To its north lay the town proper extending as far as Buitenzorg
to the north.

1. This inscription, and the inferences to be derived from it, have
formed subject of discussion by various scholars ; cf. Friederich, in T.B.G.,
Vol. i (1853), pp. 442 ff. ; Holle, in Vol. 17 (1869), PP- 483 ; Pleyte, in
Vol. 53 (1911), pp. 155 # Poerbatjaraka has discussed the whole
question at length in Vol. 59 (1921), pp. 381 if,, and his views have been
generally accepted. Cf. also Husein Jayadiningrat Sajarah Banten,

pp. 141 ff.

2. Pleyte, op. cit., pp. 166 ff.

SUVARNADVIPA 359

Three copperplates found at Kebantenan, 1 to the east
of Batavia, also refer to the same line of kings. One of
them refers to all the three kings, Rahyang Niskalavastu
KaScana, Rahyang Ningrat KaScana, and Sri Baduga Maharaja
ratu haji di Pakwan Sri Sang ratu Devata, who held his
court at Pajajaran. It will be seen that the first and the
third names are identical, while the second is different from
the list given above. The two other records refer only to the
last king.

A stone inscription at Kavali* in south Chirebon, in
Galuh district, refers to a king Prabhu raja Vastu, who ruled
in the town of Kabali, embellished the capital city Suravisesa
( SdraviSesa ), and adopted ( evidently in his old ago ) the life
of a hermit. It has been suggested that this king who was
called Prabhu raja Vastu in his lifetime was called Rahyang
Niskalavastu after his death. If this identification be accepted
we must hold that the family originally ruled at Galuh and
then transferred its seat of authority to Pajajaran Pakwan
which was founded 8 by the third king, as mentioned in the
Batu-Tulis inscription, referred to above.

The Batu-Tulis inscription is dated, but unfortunately
scholars dificr regarding the interpretation of the hundredth
figure, and so the date has been read in various ways ranging
from A.D. 1133 to 1533. Poerbatjaraka contends that the

1. Pleyte, op. cit, pp. 169-171 ; Poerbatjaraka, op. cit., pp.

389-392.

2. Pleyte, op. cit,, pp. 167 ff.

3 The Batu-Tulis Ins. merely says that the third king ruled
over Pajajaran Pakwan, but if we are right in the inference that the
family originally ruled at Galuh, he may be regarded as having founded
the new capital city, particularly as his father is referred to as crown
prince of Galuh in Carita Parahyangan, as will be shown below. Fruin-
Mees (p. 117) has, however, referred to a tradition according to which the
kingdom was founded at an earlier date by prince Kuda Lalean of
Eastern Java, and Ratu Purana was called to the throne of Pajajaran by
its king Sang Susuk Tunggal who had no legitimate heir.

360 StINl)A

date should be interpreted as 1333, and assuming this to be
true, we can refer the reign of the family at Galuh to
have commenced not later than the beginning of the 14th
century A.D.

Some traditions of this family are contained in a book
called 'Carita Parahyangan'. The passage runs as follows 1 :

"He who died at Kikis reigned for 22 years. He who
died at Keding reigned for 7 years ; he begot Aji Kolot.
He reigned for 10 years and had a son Prebu Maharaja.
When the latter had reigned for 7 years he fell victim to a
trap on the occasion of the marriage of his daughter, crown
princess Tohaan. Many people went to Java as the Javanese
did not wish to celebrate the marriage in Sunda. There was
a fight at Majapahit.

"There was a son of Prebu Wangi named Prebu Niskala-
vastu KaScana who died on the island of Larang, on the
hill Vanakusuma.

* * * * *

"The crown prince of Galuh who died at Gunungtiga
reigned for 7 years. Tfien he committed an offence by
carrying on illegitimate amorous intrigues. He was succeeded
by Nalendra Puja Premana, Ratu Jay a Devata, whose death
was brought about by treachery. He reigned for 39 years."

Now, there can be no doubt that the king who lost his
life at Majapahit on the occasion of his daughter's marriage
must be identified with the Sundanese king, who met with a
tragic end in 1357 A.D., as has been recorded above on the
authority of Pararaton. There can also be hardly any doubt
that Niskalavastu KaScana who died on the island of Larang,
and the 'crown prince of Galuh who died at Gunungtiga^,
are identical with Rahyang Niskalavastu KaScana, who
died at Nusa Larang, and his son Rahyang Devaniskala
who died at Gunatiga, according to the Batu-Tulis inscription.
It would then follow that the last king mentioned in the
i. Poerbatjaraka, op, cit, pp. 395 ft".

StJVARNADVIPA 361

above passage #u. Nalendra Puja Prcuiana Ratu Jaya Devata
has to be identified with Ratu Purana of the Batu-Tulis
inscription.

Now if we accept the date A.D. 1333 for the last named
king, we must hold that Prebu Maharaja, who lost his life
at Majapahit, has been wrongly placed in the above passage.
It has been suggested that, through mistake, his story has
been divided into two parts, one portion being narrated before
his grandfather Niskalavastu Kancana, and another portion
in its right place after that of his father, in both cases
reference being made to his death by treachery. According
to this view Niskalavastu Kaucana is the grandfather, and
Deva Niskala is the father of Prebu Maharaja, or Ratu
Devata, or Sri Vadtiga Maharaja, who founded Pajajaran,
some time before 1333, the date of his Batu-Tulis Ins., and
died at Bubat ( Majapahit ) in 1357 A.D. on the occasion of
his daughter's marriage. 1

The inscriptions tell us that king Niskalavastu died at
Nusa Larang and his son at Gunatiga. Both these places can

i. The difficulty of accepting this interpretation is obvious.
For example, we have to assume that the same text, Carita Parahyangan,
gives different regnal years to the same person (viz., 7 years to Prebu
Maharaja and 39 years to Ratu Jaya Devata who is to be identified
with him). It is, however, possible to accept the text of Carita Para-
hyangan as it is, by interpreting the date of Batu-Tulis Ins. as 1433.
In that case Prebu Maharaja, who died in 1357 A. D., would be the
predecessor of Niskalavastu. If we assign to the latter a reign of about
35 years, his grandson would be reigning about 1433 A. D., the assumed
date of the Batu-Tulis Ins., as will be seen from the following table.

Prabhu Maharaja, 1350-1357 A D,

Niskalavastu Kancana, 1357-1392 A. D.

Crown prince of Galuh, 1392-1399.

Ratu Jaya Devata, 1399-1438 A. D.

The ancestor of this royal family who died at Kikis would then
have reigned from 1311-1333 A. D. and his two successors respectively
from 1333 to 1340 and 1340 to 1350 A, D. The royal family was
thus established at the beginning of the fourteenth century.

362 8UNDA

be easily located. In the lake Penjalu, not far from Kavali,
lies Nusa Gede, popularly named Nusa Larang, which people
still associate with king Hariang Keficana. To the north of
the lake a branch of the Candana river is still called Gunung
Tilu. Nusa Larang may also be identified with Nusa Kem-
bangan which belonged to Galuh even at the beginning of the
19th century A.D. 1

The history of Sunda for the next century is again obscure
in the extreme. The defeat and death of the Sundanese king
possibly extended the supremacy of Java over Sunda for some
time. But the kingdom of Pajajaran must have regained full
independence at the beginning of the 15th century when
Majapahit was torn by internal dissensions. Since that time
the two Hindu kingdoms of Java and Sunda, i.e. of Majapahit
and Pajajaran, flourished side by side till both passed into the
hands of the Muhammadan rulers in the sixteenth century A.D.

I. T. B. G., Vol. 61 (1922), pp. 425 ff. De Haan. Priangan III,
p. 70, Pleyte, op. cit,, p, 165. T. B. G., Vol. 69 (1929)* PP. 227 ff.

Book IV

DOWNFALL OF HINDU KINGDOMS
IN SUVARNADVlPA

BOOK IV

Chapter I.

END OF HINDU RULE IN SUMATRA
1. Rise of Malayu

The disintegration of the Sailendra empire loosened the
bonds which united politically the petty states of Sumatra and
Malay Peninsula. But there shortly arose a new power in
Sumatra, which sought to rival the exploits of the decaying
empire, and revive it on a new basis. This was Malayu, which
is usually identified with Jambi in the eastern coast of Sumatra.
The existence of this kingdom in the seventh century A.D.,
and its ultimate absorption by the neighbouring kingdom of
Srl-Vijaya, have already been noted above. Since then Malayu
disappears as a separate political unit until the eleventh century
A.D., when it sends two embassies to China in 1079 and 1088
A.D. 1 But in the thirteenth century it was conquered by the
Javanese king Krtanagara. We have seen above how the
tragic end of Krtanagara enabled Malayu to throw off' the yoke
of Java, and it soon felt powerful enough to enter into a contest
with Siam for the possession of the petty states in the southern
part of Malay Peninsula.

This rivalry is reflected in the Chinese annals. Malayu
had sent envoys to China in 1281 A.D. 2 and when in 1293

1. J.A., ii XII, p. 65, f.n.(i). In B.E.F.E.O., Vol. IV, p. 346.
Pelliot gives the date of the first embassy as 1179, evidently a misprint
for 1079.

2. Pelliot, B.E.F.E.O., Vol. IV, p. 326. Ferrand thinks that
'Malayu', from the I3th century onward, refers to Malacca and not to
Malayu or Jambi in Sumatra. ( See chapter on Malacca )

364 END OF HINDU RULE IN SUMATRA

Yi-k'o-mu-su, one of the leaders of the Chinese expedition
against Java, sent envoys to king of Malayu, he sent his son (or
younger brother) in token of his allegiance. 1 During the same
period Siam had also sent several envoys to China to pay
allegiance. 2 The Chinese annals say that Malayu and Siam
had been fighting with each other for some time and so in 1295
the emperor sent an order to Siam to 'desist from further
hostilities, and to hold to its promise'. 8 This remarkable evi-
dence confirms the view, held above, that there was a rivalry
between the two states over the possessions of San-fo-tsi in
Malay Peninsula. In 1297 we hear of Malayu sending a
mission to China. 4 It may be noted that in 1299 envoys from
Siam and Malayu met at the imperial court. 5 A further
embassy was sent from Malayu in 1301.

Thus the end of the thirteenth century A.D. saw the
decline of the Sailendras and the rise of the new kingdom of
Malayu which sought to occupy the position so long hold by the
former. As we have seen above, the new kingdom owed its
existence to Java, and for a long time there was a close
attachment between the two states, When the Javanese army
retired from Malayu after the death of Krtanagara, two
princesses of Malayu accompanied it to Java. One of them
Dara Petak was married to the Javanese king. The elder
daughter, Dara Jingga, married one 'Deva' and had by him a
son named Tuhan Janaka who afterwards became king of
Malayu. He was also known as Sri Marmadeva and Haji
Mantrolot. Thus Marmadeva may be regarded as the successor

1. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 30., Pelliot, op. cit., p. 327. Perhaps
another embassy was sent from Malayu in 1294. See below.

2. Pelliot, op. cit., p. 242.

3. Ibid. This evidently shows that some time, anterior to 1295
A.D., Malayu had sought the protection of China, and the latter
forced Siam to promise that it would abstain from further hostilities
against Malayu.

4. Rockhill, T'oung Pao, Ser. II, Vol. XV (1914), p. 443. fn.

5. Pelliot, op. cit,, p. 328. 6. IbuJ.

SUVARNADVlPA 365

of Maulivarmadeva who was ruling in 1286 A.D, as a vassal
of Kj-tanagara. The account of Marco Polo shows that in
1292 A.D. Malayu (Malaiur) was a flourishing kingdom and a
prosperous centre of trade and commerce.

The next king of Malayu known to us is Sdityavarmadeva.
A beautiful image of ManjuSrI, which once stood in the temple
of Candi Jago, contains two Sanskrit inscriptions. 1 The one
on the front says that the image was set up in A.D. 1343 in a
Buddhist temple by 5ryyavang,4adhirfija. The inscription
on the back informs us that in the kingdom of Rajapatnl, the
minister Sdityavarman, belonging to her family, built a beauti-
ful temple at Jinftlayapura in Java, in the year 1343 A.D., for
securing the highest religious merit to his parents and relations.

The interpretation, specially the relation of the two inscrip-
tions on the two sides of the image, has given rise to some
difficulty. Kern held that Aryyavangsadhiriija and Aditya-
varman both refer to one and the same person, and identified
him as the king of Malayu, known from other records. Kern
held that the king of Malayu calls himself Adhiraja (suzerain)
of the 5rya clan in respect of Malayu, and assumes the lower
title of Mantrl in respect of Java. On the other hand, Bosch
has shown that Aryyavang&idhiraja was the title of a high
official in the court of Majapahit, and he holds that the two
inscriptions really belong to two different officials of the jjourt.
He traces the name of Vj-ddhamantri Zrya Devaraja Sri Aditya
in another record of the period and identifies him with
Adityavarman of the inscription, who subsequently became a
king in Sumatra.

Whatever that may be, Jdityavarman of the inscription is
generally recognised to be the same as the king of Malayu of
that name, and the identification of Bosch would prove that he
was holding some high offices in Java before he occupied the
throne in Malayu. Krom holds that he successively filled the

i, For a full discussion, cf. Rouflfeer, B.K.I., Vol. 77 ( 1921 )
pp. 194-201.

366 END OF HINDU RULE IN SUMATRA

posts of XryavangSadhirSja and Vyddhamautri Arya Devar&ja
and thus refers both the inscriptions to him 1 .

A difficulty, no doubt, arises from the fact that 5ditya-
varman claims to be descended from the family of Rajapatnl
(tadbangSgijah). We have no evidence in support of this. It
is true that one of the Malayu princesses was mother of the
Javanese king Jayanagara, and Adityavarman, for all we know,
might have been the son of the other princess. But even this
does not give him any claim to be descended from the family
of Rajapatni. We may, therefore, take the expression to mean
no more than that he was a member of the Javanese royal
family, unless, of course, there was some relationship by
marriage which is not yet known to us. 2

We now turn to the inscriptions of Adityavarman in
Sumatra itself. In 1347 A.D. he engraved an inscription on
the back of the image of AmoghapaSa, which was set up at
DharmaSraya by the Javanese king Krtanagara in 1286 A.D.
(see ante, p. 299). The pedestal of the image, which contained
the inscription of Krtanagara, was left where it was, but the
image itself was removed by Adityavarman and re-consecrated
in a new temple with a new inscription. The image now
stands at Rambahan near Lubuk Bulan in the Batanghari
district, and possibly the temple of Adityavarman was also
erected there. The inscription ', written in corrupt Sanskrit,
refers to the king as Srimat Sri Udayadityavarman ( var.
Adityavarmmodaya ) PratapaparakramarSjendra Maulimali-
varmmadeva Maharajadhiraja who set up the image of
Amoghapasa for the welfare of Malay apura 4 . The title
Maharajadhiraja indicates the rank of the king to be higher than
that of Maulivarman in 1286 A.D.

An inscribed stone, originally found at Kapala Bukit
Gombak and now lying at Pagarrujung, near Fort V. D.

i. Krom Geschiedenis, p. 389. 2. Cf. B.K.I. (iQ30 PP 32-35.

3. V.G., Vol. VII (1917), PP. 163-175-

4, 'Malayapura* is the reading of Kern, but Krom thinks it
19 Malayu ( Geschiedenis, p. 390 f.n. 3, ).

SUVABNADVlPA 367

Capellen, in upper Padang, gives the date 1347 l . Several
inscriptions of Adityavarman have been found in the
neighbourhood. All these prove this locality, the heart of
the later kingdom of Menangkabau, to have been the centre
of .Sdityavarman's kingdom. One of these inscriptions, the
large inscription of Pagarrujung 2 (originally of Bukit Gambak)
dated in the year 1356, refers to the erection of a
Vihara by Maharajadhiraja Adityavarman Pratapaparakrama
Rajendramaulimanivarinmadeva. In another inscription at
Kubu Raja 3 the king is styled Kanakamedinlndra i.e. lord
of Kanakamedinl ( Golden land ), a synonym of Suvarnabhumi.
His father's name is given as Advayavarman and his family
is said to be descended from Indra ( KuliSadhara ) while
he is regarded as an incarnation of Loke^vara. In the
Pagarrujung inscription he is said to be Dharmaraja-kula-
tilaka i.e. the ornament of Dharmaraja's family.

Another inscription found at Suroasa* is dated in the
year 1375 A.D. Adityavarman is here styled SuravaSa-v&n
i.e. lord of SuravaSa, and there is hardly any doubt that the
name of the place has been preserved in modern Suroasa.

The name Sri Suravasa occurs in another inscription*
of Adityavarman near Bandar Bapahat. This record is
written in two scripts. On the left we find the usual script
of the king's records, vix,., the Kavi script with some local
variations, while on the right the same thing was repeated
in South Indian Grantha alphabet. This shows that South
Indians formed a fairly large element of the local population.

1. Kern, V.G., Vol. VI (1917), pp. 249-257 ; O.V., 1912, pp. 34. ff.

2. Kern, V.G., Vol. VI (1917)* PP- 261-275 ; O. V. 1912, pp. 51. ff

3. Kern, V.G., Vol. VII (191?), pp. 215-221. The name of the
place is Kuburaja and not Kubur raja as Kern thought (O.V, 1930,

P. 150).

4. Kern, V.G. Vol. VI (1917), pp. 252-261 ; O.V., 1913, p. 52.

5. O.V., 1912, p. 46. Only a portion of the record, written
in South Indian Grantha alphabet, was read by Mr. Krishna Sastri.
But this agrees with the other portion.

368 END OF HINDU RULE Itf SUMATRA

Among other inscriptions 1 of 5dityavarman, one refers
to the crown prince ( Yuvaraja ) Anangavarman, fl , one to a
high official called tumanggung 8 , and two others refer to his
Mahasenapati Pamanan. Another inscription, with a date
read tentatively as 1371 A.D., is perhaps to be ascribed to his
reign.*

We may conclude from all these inscriptions that king
Adityavarman was a Tantrik Buddhist, and that he ruled
for at least 28 years (1347-1375 A.D.) over a fairly extensive
kingdom, which comprised the central portion of Sumatra,
and extended from the eastern to the western coast. According
to the Javanese chronicle, NSgara-Krtagama, this kingdom of
Malayu acknowledged the supremacy of the Javanese king.
If that were so, it would really mean a sort of nominal
allegiance. It is interesting to note that Nag. Kr. refers
to Sumatra by the general name of Malayu, and thus gives an
indirect evidence of the supreme position of that kingdom in
Sumatra 5 .

2. Rise of Islam.

The downfall of the Sailendras led to many other important
consequences besides the rise of Malayu as a great power.
Sumatra was now divided into a number of petty states
which paid a nominal allegiance, some time to Java and
some time to China, as suited their convenience, but all the
while indulged in internecine wars and jealousies. This paved
the way for the gradual establishment of Islam as a political
power which was destined in the long run to overwhelm
nearly the whole of Malayasia.

1. Inventaris O.V., 1912, Nos. 20, 24, 29, 30, 41, 42,

2. Versl. Med. Kon. Ak. V. Wet. Afd. Lett., 5 : 2 (1917), P. 33.

3. O.V,, 1912, No. 28. 4- Par., p. 122 ; O.V., 1914, p. 108.
5. A comprehensive historical account of Sumatra, based upon

both traditions and historical facts, is given by L.C. Westenenk in
Congres I, pp. 1-39.

SUVARNADVIPA 369

The first definite information of this changed political condi-
tion is obtained from the account of Marco Polo 1 . Marco
Polo calls the island "Java the less", and says that it had eight
kingdoms and eight kings. Of these he gives detailed
account of six kingdoms "that lie at this side of the land"
and were visited by him. These kingdoms were Ferlec,
Basma, Samara, Dagroian, Lambri and Fansur. Marco Polo
says nothing of the two other kingdoms "at the other side of
the island" as he never visited them.

Of the six kingdoms, Ferlec is undoubtedly Perlak on
the north-east, and Lambri the same as Lamuri or Great Atjeh
(Acheh), on the north-west. The three kingdoms named between
these two were apparently situated in the intervening region.
Thus Basma may be identified with Pasc, and Samara with
Samudra. Dagroitin cannot be identified with certainty. Fansur,
the sixth kingdom, is undoubtedly Barus. Most of the details
given by Marco Polo are concerned with peculiar manners and
customs of the people, but he throws valuable hints on the
political and religious condition of the kingdoms he describes.

The kingdoms had their own kings, but all, except Ferlec,
called themselves subjects of the Great Khan i.e. the Chinese
emperor Kublai Khan. The subjection, however, was more
nominal than real, as would appear from the following statement
of Marco Polo : "They call themselves subjects of the Great
Khan but they pay him no tribute ; indeed they are so far
away that his men could not go thither. Still all these islanders
declare themselves to be his subjects and sometimes they send
curiosities as presents." Marco Polo's statement is corro-
borated by the facts that an envoy of the kingdom of Samudra
visited China in 1286 A. D, 2 and that embassies were sent
by the generals of Kublai Khan, after reaching Java, to some

1. "The Book of Ser Marco Polo", -Translated by Yule,
Vol. II. pp. 284. ff.

2. Rockhill, T'oung Pao Ser. II, Vol. 15 (1914), PP 440-1.
47

370 END OF HINDU RULE IN SUMATRA

of the Sumatran states including Lambri and Sumatra, i.e.
Lamuri and Samudra, 1 in 1292 A.D.

The people of all the kingdoms except Ferlec were idolators,
and evidently belonged to a very primitive state of civilisation.
Many of them were cannibals and great believers in sorcery
and magic.

About Ferlec Marco Polo observes as follows : "This king-
dom is so much frequented by the Saracen merchants that they
have converted the natives to the Law of Mahomet I mean
the townspeople only, for the hill-people live for all the world
like beasts, and eat human flesh, as well as all other kinds of
flesh, clean or unclean. And they worship this, that and the
other thing, for in fact the first thing that they see on rising
in the morning, that they do worship for the rest of the day".

This picture of the primitive people of Sumatra shows us
what they were when they came into contact with the Hindu
civilisation, which evidently had not made its influence felt in
the northern parts of the country, even so late as the 13th
century AJX Evidently Islam was slowly spread among these
people by the Muhammadan merchants, before any Muhain-
madan kingdom was established.

Thus Perlak was the only Muhammadan state in Sumatra
in 1292 A.D. when Marco Polo visited the island. Tradition
places its foundation at an earlier date than that of the
Muhammadan state of Samudra. Now Sultan Malik al-Saleh,
who founded this state, died in 1297 A.D. The foundation of
the Muhammadan kingdom of Samudra must thus be placed
between 1292 and 1297 A.D.*

Sumudra, Lamuri, Perlak and some other less known
kingdoms are also referred to by Ilasid-ad-Din (1310 A.D.),

1. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 30. Rockhill, op. cit, p. 442. Pelliot,
B.E.F.E.O., Vol. IV (327). Pelliot amends Ki-mo-la-mao, name of
one of these states, into Malayu.

2. The date of the Sultan's death is known from his tomb-stone
inscription. For this, as well as the tradition concerning Perlak, cf.
Moquette in Rapp, Oudh, Dienst., IQI3 PP- 1-12.

SUVAENADVlPA 371

but he does not give any detailed account beyond stating that
Lamuri was a large state under an independent king. 1 Other
Arab writers also refer to some towns or states, in Sumatra,
but do not in any way indicate that they possessed either
political or commercial importance.

About 1345-6 A. D. Ibn Batuta 4 visited the kingdom of
Samudra, which he calls Sumutra, in the island of Java, which
here undoubtedly means Sumatra. He was welcomed by the
Muhammadan ruler of the place, Sultan Malik az-Zahir 3 .
Ibn Batuta describes him as one of the most illustrious and
generous kings, but says nothing definite about the extent of
his kingdom. But that there were Hindu kingdoms on all
sides is quite clear from his statement that the Sultan frequen-
tly fought with and defeated the infidels who lived in the
neighbourhood, and they paid him tribute for living in peace.

One of these Hindu kingdoms called 'Mai Java' was visited
by Ibn Batuta. After leaving Samudra, he sailed along the
coast for 21 days, and reached the capital of this kingdom.
Ibu Batuta here relates a story which throws some interesting
light on the political condition of Sumatra. It runs as
follows :

'The Sultan of Samudra had a nephew (brother's son) who
married his daughter and was appointed governor of a province.
This nephew was desirous of marrying the daughter of an Amir,
but the Sultan chose the girl for himself. The disappointed
lover waited for his opportunity. Once the Sultan had gone to

1. Ferrand Textes, Vol. II, p. 361.

2. For Ibn Baza's account, cf. Ferrand Textes, Vol. II, pp.
438 ff. Ferrand is inclined to reject the whole account of Ibn Ba{u{a
as pure fabrication on the ground that his itinerary is an impossible
one.

3. Malik az-Zahir was a title borne by nearly all the Sultans
of Samudra. Sultan Muhammad Malik az-Zahir died in 1326. He
was followed by Ahmad and Zain-al-Abidin, both of whom carried
the same title. Ibn Ba{u{a must have met one of these, probably the
former,

372 END OP HINDU RULE IN SUMATRA

fight the infidels, who lived at a distance of about a month's
journey. The nephew entered the city of Samudra, which had
no walls, declared himself the Sultan, and was accepted as such
by one section of the people. As soon as the Sultan heard of this
revolt he marched towards the capital. His nephew, however,
took as much money and other valuables as he could lay hands
on, and the girl of his choice, and then took shelter with the
infidel king of Mul Java. The Sultan now built walls round
the capital city to guard against future revolts of this kind/

The location of Mul Java has not been determined with
certainty. Ibn Batuta says that its length was two months'
journey, and it produced excellent perfumes, named after
Kakfila and Eam&ra, two of its districts. Van der Lith
identified Kakiila with Angkola 1 , but Ferrand rejects it on
philological grounds 4 . Pelliot identifies the same place with
Ko-ku-lo, which is mentioned by the Chinese traveller Kian-
tan (c. 800 A. D.), and is to be located to the west of Kedah 3 .
Rouffaer places it in Sumatra itself, in Menangkabau*. In
view of these wide differences of opinion it is difficult
to suggest any identification, but the fact that the rebels
from Samudra took shelter in it seems to refer to
some place in Sumatra itself. Malayu-Jambi would perhaps
not be an unacceptable theory, in view of the great power
and prestige of that Hindu kingdom. If it were to be
located outside Sumatra I would suggest Java itself.
Mul Java would mean, in Sanskrit, the original Java, as
distinguished from Java, the less, named after it 5 . Wassaf-
i-Hadrat, writing towards the close of the 13th century A.D. 6 ,

i. Merveilles (1883-86), p. 240. 2. Textes, p. 431.

3. T'oung Pao, Ser. II. Vol. 13 ( 1912 ), p. 455- Ferrand
opposes this view in J.A., Vol. II XX (1922), p. 24.

4. B.K.I., Vol. 77 (i92). P- 78. note.

5. Schlegel, though interpreting it in the same way, identifies it
with Sumatra (Prathama Yavabhu) T'oug Pao, Ser. I. Vol. IX., p. 368.

$. Ferrand Textes, p. 359.

SUVAKNADVlPA 373

refers to Mul Sava (=Mul Java) as one of the islands
conquered by Kublai Khan in 1292 A.D. He also refers
to aloe and Girofle as products of the locality, as does
Ibn Batuta in respect of Mdla-Java. Now Java was conquered
by Kubiai Khan in the year 1292-1293 A.D., and so this
would be a point in support of the proposed identification.
But the details in respect of the conquest of Mul-Sava
as given by Wassaf do not agree with those given in official
Chinese history as recorded above.

On the whole, Ibn Ba^uta's account shows the gradual
spread of Islam as a political factor in northern Sumatra.
There is no doubt that India, and not Arabia, served as the
base from which the stream of colonisation carried the influence
of Islam towards the Far East 1 . An examination of the
tombstones of the Sultans of Samudra-Pasc reveals a close
resemblance to those found in Gujarat, and there is hardly
any doubt that they were imported from the latter place*.
We may thus presume a brisk trade activity between Gujarat
and Sumatra, and this indirectly led to the furtherance of Islam
in the Far East.

The Chinese book Tao-i-chc-lio, written by Wang Ta-yuen
in 1349 A.D., refers to some of the states in northern Sumatra
such as PaScur, Tamiang, Batakland, Lambri, and Samudra,
but says nothing of the political condition or of the spread of
Islam. It also refers to San-f o-tsi and Kieu-kiang (Palembang)
as two separate states under two kings 3 .

But the Nagara-Krtagama, composed in A.D. 1365,
gives us a very comprehensive list of the petty states in
Sumatra which all acknowledged the supremacy of Java. As
we have seen above (see p. 330) the list includes Samudra,

1. Snouck Hurgronje 'Arable en oost Indie* (pp. 15-17).

2. Moquette in T.B.G., Vol. 54 (1912), pp. 536. ff. The Sejarah
Malayu (chap. VII) furnishes confirmatory evidence of the custom of
bringing tomb-stones from India to Malayan countries (J. Str, Br.
R.A.S., No. 77t P- 170.

3. Rockhiil T'ounj Pao, Ser. II, Vol. XVI (1915), pp. 134-35,

374 END OF HINDU RULE IN SUMATRA

Lambri, and Perlak, i.e. the northernmost states, referred to
above. The statement of Nagara-Kptagama may be true, and
perhaps all these states now recognised the king of Java as their
suzerain in more or less the same way that they acknowledged
Kublai Khan in 1292 A.D. as noticed by Marco Polo.

But with the decline of the Majapahit empire in the
beginning of the fifteenth century A.D. the states of Northern
Sumatra again returned to their allegiance to China, and at
the same time a further progress of Islam is noticeable in this
region. We get a fair idea of both these changes from the
Chinese annals, specially the History of the Ming Dynasty and
the writings of Ma Huan (1425-1432) 1 .

According to Ma Huan the state of Sumatra, or Samudra,
was the most powerful in northern Sumatra. It was bounded
by the sea on the north and the mountains on the south. To
the east was a small state Aru, and towards the north, two other
smaller states, Na-ku-erh and Li-tai. According to Schlegel
the name of this great state is preserved in that of a miserable
village of the present day, called Samudra. *

According to the History of the Ming Dynasty 3 the Chinese
emperor sent envoys to this country in 1403 and 1404. The
latter also sent tributes to China before a third imperial envoy,
Cheng Ho, came in 1405. About this time the neighbouring
king of Na-ku-erh defeated and killed the king of Sumutra.
The widowed queen, having no grown-up son to avenge the foul
crime, offered to marry any one who could do so. Thus an old
fisherman who defeated and killed the king of Na-ku-erh
became king of Sumutra. The emperor issued an edict appoint-

1. For the Chinese account that follows, cf. Groeneveldt
Notes, pp. 85-92. Rockhill, op. cit., pp. 146 ff. Schlegel'i 'oung
Pao, Ser. II. Vol. II. pp. 399 ff.

2. T'oung Pao, Ser. II, Vol. II, p, 338.

3. For the account that follows, cf. Groeneveldt Notes,
pp. 85-93. For various corrections and suggestions, cf. Pelliot, T'oung
Pao, 1933 ( pp. 275, fn. 2, 290-294 ). The discovery of a new Chinese
source makes the whole story of the fisherman extremely doubtful
(T'oung Pao, I934> P-

SUVARNADVIPA 375

ing this fisherman, named Tsai-nu-li-a-pi-ting-ki l king of
Sumutra, and gave him a seal, a commission, and a court-dress
of coloured silk. In 1409 this fisherman king came and offered
tribute at the imperial court. But before 1412 he was murdered
by the son of the late king, and his son Su-kan-la (Sekander)
fled into the mountains. But the Chinese supported the cause
of the old king's son and defeated Su-kan-la. According to
Hsing Cha Sheng Lan, Su-kan-la usurped the throne in 1413,
but was defeated by the Chinese troops. The new king of
Sumutra was grateful for the imperial favour and came to the
imperial court in 1415 to offer tribute. He regularly sent
tributes to China till 1434, when he sent a younger brother to
the court. 2 The brother represented that the king was
already old and could not manage the affairs any more, and now
asked permission to cede the throne to his son, called
A-pu-sai, 3 who was accordingly appointed king of the country.
From this time the envoys from Samudra became gradually
more rare. The last embassy was sent in 1486. The Chinese
accounts seem to show that Samudra had become the most
important centre of trade and it was also politically the most
important. Ma Huan says that the neighbouring state of Li-tai
was a dependency of Sumutra. Schlegel identifies Li-tai with
the state named Lide by Barros and situated between Pedir
and Pirada, which lay west of Paccm. 4

Another important state, Lambri, had in 1412 sent envoys,
with those of Samudra, to China to carry tribute. The envoys

1. Pelliot points out that the name is really 'Tsai-nu-li-a.pi-ting 1
which corresponds to Zaynu-1-Abidin/ well-known in the history of
Acheh (T'oung Pao, 1933, pp. 275-6, fn. i).

2. According to the History of the Ming dynasty this brother
died in China, and some time later the king of Sumutra sent another
younger brother. As Pelliot suggests, perhaps the reference to two
brothers is due to some confusion (T'oung Pao, 1934, p. 294, fn. i)

3. Pelliot reads the name as A-pu-sai-yi-ti and restores it as
Abu Said. (Ibid).

4. T'oung Pao, Ser II, Vol. II, p. 347.

376 END OF HINDU RULE IN SUMATRA

were presented with court dresses and the king got a seal, a
commission, and silks. It sent tribute every year till 1424.
Ma Huan writing in 1416 A.D. notes that the king of the country
and its people are all Muhammadans. 1 The king who sent
tribute in 1412 is called Maharasa. 9

To the east of Samudra was another kingdom, Aru, which
similarly sent envoys to China in 1411, 1419, 1421 and 1423.
Here also the king and the people were all Muhammadans by
1416 A.D. 3 The memory of this state is preserved in the
name of the Aru Islands.

Another kingdom, Nakur, situated to the west of Samudra,
consisted of only one mountain village and about a thousand
families. The people tattooed their faces with three pointed
green figures, and for this reason the king was called the king
of tattooed faces. Their language, manners, and customs were
like those of Sumutra.*

Thus by the beginning of the fifteenth century A.D. the
northern states of Sumatra passed from the sphere of influence
of Java to that of China, and gradually adopted the Islamic
religion. The importance of Sumatra as a centre of Islam was
no doubt due to the fact that Pasai (Sumatra) had succeeded
Kedah as the chief centre of trade. In the fifteenth century
Malacca succeeded Pasai and played the role of the leading
Muslim state, as we shall see in the next chapter. After the
fall of Malacca at the beginning of the sixteenth century, Acheen
in northern Sumatra became the chief centre of trade and of
Islam. "From Acheen Islamic faith spread to Ulakan, from
Ulakan into Menangkabau. In the seventeenth century the
people along the coast of the Lampong district began to be

1. Groeneveldt Notes, pp. 98-100.

2. Schlegel reads it as Mahama Shah ( T'oung Pao Ser. II,
Vol. II, p. 357 ). Pelliot restores it as Muhammad Shah ; T'oung Pao,
I933 P- 296

3. Groeneveldt Notes, pp. 94-6.

4. Ibid, p. 96.

SUVARNADVIPA 377

converted, and in the eighteenth Islam spread to the up-
country. In the middle of the sixteenth century a missionary
went from Palembang to Borneo and made converts at Sukadana
and Madan. In 1606 A.D. a Menangkabau trader converted
the Raja of Pallo in Celebes." 1

i. J. St. Br. R.A.S., No 77, pp. 171 ff. to which the reader may
refer for a detailed account of the introduction of Muhammadan faith
in Malay Peninsula and Malay Archipelago. Cf. also 'Encyclopaedic
van Nederlandsch Indie 1 s.v. Mohammedanisme ; and BJ.O. Schrieke
'Het Boek van Bonang.'
48

Chapter II

END OF HINDU RULE IN MALAY
PENINSULA

1. Malay Peninsula after the disruption of the
Sailendra Empire.

The Mediaeval history of Malay Peninsula forms really
an essential part of the history of the Sailendra empire which
we have related above. The peculiar geographical position
of the Malay Peninsula invested it with a special commercial
importance, as it controlled the trade-route to East Indies.
By the conquest of Sumatra and the Peninsula, the Sailendras
obtained that commercial supremacy to which the Arab writers
bear eloquent testimony. Henceforth the greater part of the
Peninsula formed an important part of the empire, referred to
by the Arabs as Zilbag, and its fortunes rose and fell with
Zabag. The Arabs refer to Kalilh as the principal port, and
it has been identified with Keddah or Kraii. 1

As soon as Java rose to political importance, her eyes were
naturally turned to the Malay Peninsula, as its possession was
the key to the commercial supremacy over eastern waters.
The details of the early stages of the attempt, on the part of
Java, to obtain a footing in the Peninsula are somewhat vague
and obscure. Rouffiier has advanced some arguments to show
that king Sindok of Java sent a naval expedition against the
Malay Peninsula in the second quarter of the tenth century.
Although Rouffaer's arguments are far from convincing, yet the
hypothesis is not an improbable one. 9

1. J.A.,u-XlV(i9i9), PP.

2. B. K. I., Vol. 77 (1921), p. 114.

SUVAENADVlPA 379

There are references to some Hindu states in Malay
Peninsula during the period of Sailendra supremacy. In the
first place, we may mention that Schlegel locates Ho-ling or
Kaling of the Chinese writers in Malay Peninsula, and not
in Java. 1 If we accept his view we find an important state
in the Peninsula, whose history we have included in that of Java.

Schlegel further identifies Ts'ien'-chi-fuh, also called Pean-
chi-poah (=PaSca-pur, pur meaning island), near Kaling, with
the five islands w'%. P. Kupat, P. Baiicalis, P. Padang, P.
Pandjorc and P. Rantau, lying opposite Malacca. 2 He also
quotes a passage from the New History of the T'ang Dynasty
which "distinctly says that the "Five Islands" in the Straits of
Malacca were originally tributary states (or colonies) of Southern
India". On this Schlegel observes : "There is no doubt that
all these islands, as also Kaling on the main, were founded by
Kalinga or Kling colonies who gave the name of their own
country to the new settlements. 3 This, in a way, corroborates
the view put forward above on p. 227, viz. that the Sailendras
came from Kalinga coast and conquered the Malay
Peninsula.

We do not, however, know any particulars about the history
of these "Five Islands", and, as noted above, the identifications,
proposed by Schlegel, are extremely doubtful.

In 983 A.D. we get a definite reference to another kingdom
in Malay Peninsula. The Chinese pilgrim Fah-yu, leaving for
India in or shortly after 983 A.D., received from the emperor
letters of introduction to the kings whose territories he intended
to visit. Among these are mentioned the king of San-fo-tsi
and Sseu-ma-ki-mang, king of Ko-ku-la. Ko-ku-la has been
unanimously located on the western coast of the Malay
Peninsula. The fact that the king of San-fo-tsi and king of
Ko-ku-la are mentioned separately in the same sentence does

I. T'oung Pao, Serie I, Vol. IX, pp.

1. Ibid, p. 279, fn. 25. 3. Ibid, p. 287.

380 END OF HINDU RULE IN MALAY PENINSULA

not necessarily prove that the latter was an independent king, 1
though it is not unlikely.

Indeed, according to the theory of Rouffaer, there were
about this time several powerful states in Malay Peninsula
which figure so prominently in connection with the overthrow
of the Javanese kingdom of DharmavamSa in 1007 A. D., and
against which Airlangga had to carry on a bitter and prolonged
fight. But we have already discussed this point (Bk. Ill,
chap. II) and need not refer to it again.

It is in connection with the invasion of Rajendra Cola, early
in the eleventh century A. D., that we for the first time obtain
a list of states in the Malay Peninsula which formed a part of
the empire of the Sailendras. Chau Ju-kua also gives us a
similar list of states at the beginning of the thirteenth
century A. D. The names and identification of these states
have already been discussed above (pp. 175 ff, pp. 193 ff.)

By a combination of these two lists we may form a general
idea of the petty states that flourished in the Malay Peninsula.

The kingdoms of Grahi, Ma-ppappalam, Talaittakkolam,
Tamralinga, Mayirudingam, Pa-t'a, and Ts'ien-Mai formed
the northern group. The northernmost state was Grahi, which
separated KambujadeSa from the Peninsular dominion of San-
fo-tsi. The southern group was composed of Bcranang, Pahang,
Trengganau and Kelantan, Between these two groups lay
Kataha or Kadaram and Lengkasuka which probably occupied
both the eastern and the western coasts of the Peninsula.

These principalities did not enjoy equal power or impor-
tance. Kataha or Kadara was no doubt the chief of these,

i. The information is given in the History of the Second Han
Dynasty. The relevant passage, translated by E. Chavannes ( Revue de
T histoire des religions, t. XXXIV, 1896, p. 52), has been reproduced in
Ferrand's atricle in J. A., n-XX (1922), p. 22. Krom, quoting the same
passage, gives the date as 963 A. D. ( Geschiedenis 2 p. 227). For
the name of the king, cf. discussions by Pelliot (B. E. F. E. O., Vol. IV,

SUVARNADVIPA 381

as testified to by the Cola records which generally refer to the
Sailendra emperor as king of Kataha or Kadara. Rsjendra
Cola does not refer to any state of the southern group, and even
omits the last two of the northern. Chan Ju-kua, too, gives a
detailed notice only of Tamralinga, Kadaram, Lengkasuka, and
Beranang.

Although a vassal state of the Sailcndras, Tamralinga sent
an embassy to China in 1001 A. D. 1 .

The decline of the empire of San-fo-tsi during the latter
half of the thirteenth century A. D. brought about a great
change in the political condition of the Malay Peninsula. Java,
the successful rival, now regarded the empire of his enemy as
her legitimate prey. Thus Krtanagara conquered Pahang, one
of the vassal states of San-fo-tsi. The tragic end of Krtana-
gara did not allow him to carry on this direct process of
conquest any further. But Malayu, the vassal state of Java,
which was planted by Krtanagara as the out-post of Javanese
authority in the heart of Sumatra, continued the task and
conquered many of the vassal states in Malay Peninsula.
About the same time the king of Siam entered the stage and
by 1292 A. D. had established his authority as far as Ligor.
The lost Peninsular empire of San-fo-tsi thus proved a bone of
contention between Siam and Malayu, as we have already
noticed above (Bk. IV, ch. I). According to the 'Kot.
Monthieraban (Kata Mandira-pala) or Palatine Law of Siam,
enacted in A. D. 1360, Ujong Tanah (Johor), Malaka, Malayu,
and Worawarl were vassal states of Siam. 8

But with the growth of the empire of Majapahit Java
pursued again the policy of re-conquering the Malay Peninsula.
By 1365 A. D. nearly the whole of it was included within the
empire of Java, as would appear from the detailed list of states
given in the Nagara-Krtagama. (Bk. Ill, ch. VI).

i. Eftudes Asiatique, Vol. II, pp. 108-110.
3. Gerini Researches, pp. 531-2,

382 END OF HINDU RULE IN MALAY PENINSULA

With the downfall of the Majapahit empire at the beginning
of the fifteenth century A. D., Siam must have again tried to
consolidate its authority in Malay Peninsula. But now the
Malay states tried to shake off the yoke of both Java and Siam.
We have already seen above, in connection with the history of
Java, that China took advantage of the downfall of the
Majapahit empire to pose as the protector of its vassal states,
and thereby play an imperial role in the affairs of the Malay
Peninsula and Malay Archipelago. The Peninsular states
thus naturally turned towards China, specially is the authority
of China was more nominal than that of either Java or Siam.
This is clearly indicated by the fact that various states like
Pahang, Kelantan, and Malacca now send tributes to China.

The History of the Ming Dynasty gives us the following
information about Pahang, the old court-name for wliich was
Indrapura, evidently the name given by the old Indian
settlers. 1

'Pahang is situated to the west of Siam. In the year
1378 the king Maharaja Tadjau sent envoys with a letter,
written on a golden leaf, and bringing as tribute six foreign
slaves and products of the country. They were received
according to the established rules.

'In the year 1411 the king Pa-la-mi-so-la-ta-lo-si-ni
( Paramefivara Darsana ? ) sent envoys carrying tribute. In
1412 Cheng Ho went as an envoy to their country, and in the
year 1414 they sent tribute again. (The name of the envoy
sent in 1411 is rendered by Schlegel as Somaka Mantri).

'In the year 1416 they sent tribute and Cheng Ho was
again ordered to go there/ 8

Later, Pahang became a vassal of Siam, and its ruler
Maharaja Deva Sura was defeated and captured by Sultan
Mansur Shah of Malacca, and thus ended the Hindu royal
line of Pahang. 3

I. J. Str. Br. R. A. S,, No. 81, p. 30.

a. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 137. Schlegel-Toung Pao, Ser. F,
Vpl. X, pp. 4iff. 3. Winstedt-History of Malaya, p. 47.

SUVARNADVIPA 383

As regards Kelantan we read iu the same Chinese History :
"In the year 1411 the king Maharaja K'u-ma-r sent envoys
to bring tribute, and in 1412 Cheng Ho got orders to bring
him an imperial letter praising his conduct and to present
him with different kinds of silk." 1

2. Rise and fall of Malacca.

Of the independent states in Malay Peninsula that rise
into prominence about the beginning of the fifteenth century
A.D., the most important was undoubtedly that of Malacca,
which rapidly grew to be the leading commercial centre in
that region. The early history of this kingdom is involved
in obscurity, 8 as we have to depend mainly upon indigenous
traditions, either recorded in native chronicles or handed
down by Portuguese writers. Ferrand has collected together
all these traditions which seek to trace the history of the
kingdom since its foundation 3 . It is needless for our present
purpose to examine all these in detail. Leaving aside the
incredible accounts of Gaspar Corrca who places the foundation
of Malacca in the eighth century A. D., the remaining authori-
ties date the event in the thirteenth, fourteenth, or the beginning
of the fifteenth century A.D. As to the details, those given
in 'Commentaires d' Albuquerque' are supported in a general
way, and particularly as to the names of kings, by Jean de

1. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 139,

2. This is, of course, on the assumption that Malaiyur or Malayu
is the same as the old state of that name in Sumatra, viz. Jambi. The
contrary view is maintained by Ferrand (J. A. n -XI, pp. 39 iff. XII,
pp. 5 iff) who holds that from I3th century onward Malayu denotes
Malacca, and who, therefore, ascribes to Malacca what has been said
in the last chapter regarding Malayu from 1281 A. D. Ferrand's view
has been challenged by Rouffaer (B. K. I. Vol. 77, PP- iff, 359*? ; Vol. 86,
pp. I39ff., I93ff.). I have followed Rouflfaer's view which is generally held.

3. Ferrand J. A., ii-XI (1918), pp. 407-467. For a critical
interpretation of indigenous sources, cf. Blagden Notes on Malay History
(J. Str. Br, R. A. S,, No. 53, pp. I39ff.).

384 END OF HINDU RULE IN MALAY PENINSULA

Barros and Godinho de Eredia. They are also confirmed to a
certain extent by the Chinese Annals. 1 We may, therefore,
begin with the version of Albuquerque 8 regarding the
history of the kingdom of Malacca.

"There reigned a king Bataratamurel ( Bhatara Tumapcl )
in Java, and a king ParimiSura ( ParameSvara ) in Palembang.
As there were frequent fights between the two they came to
an agreement. Parimisura married the daughter of the king
of Java, called ParimiSuri (ParamcSvarl), and agreed to pay
tribute to his father-in-law. He, however, soon repented of
his decision, and refused to pay either homage or tribute to
the king of Java. The king of Java thereupon invaded
Palembang, and ParimiSura, being defeated, fled with the
wife, children and some escorts to Singapura ( Singapore ).
It was then a large and wealthy city under Siam and its
governor hospitably received the royal fugitive. ParimiSura,
however, killed his host and made himself master of the
city. On hearing this news his former subjects of Palembang,
numbering 3000, came to Singapore. Parimisura welcomed
them and lived there for five years, pillaging, with his fleet,
the ships that passed through the Strait of Singapore. 3

i. J. A. n-XI (1918), pp. 393-405. Groeneveldt Notes,
pp. 123-134. 2. Ferrand, op. cit., p. 411.

3. There has been much speculation about the early history
of Singapore. Scholars have sought to identify it with Mo-ho-sin of
I-tsing, Salahat of Ibn Khordadzbeh, Malayur of Marco Polo, and
Ma-li-yu-eul of the History of the Yuan Dynasty ; but these are all
very problematical, The account given in Malay Annals is a curious
jumble of myths and traditions. The identity of Tumasik and Singapore
is universally accepted, and as such we find a reference to it in Tao-i Chih
lio of Wang Ta-yuan. Reference has already been made above to the
conquest of Tumasik by the Javanese about the middle of the fourteenth
century A,D. Reference may be made in this connection to the
famous 'inscription at the mouth of the Singapore river* which was
destroyed by the Public Works Department about a century ago.

For a brief account of the old history of Singapore, cf. Winstedt
A History of Malaya (i935>i PP* 31-3&

SUVARNADVIPA 385

'Then ParimiSura was attacked by the chief of Patani,
brother of the governor of Singapore whom he had so foully
murdered. Being defeated, Parimigura fled with his people
to the mouth of the Muar river inhabited only by a few
fishermen. About this time 20 or 30 fishermen invited him
to settle in their village, which was very fertile and yielded
all necessaries of life. Parimiura, being satisfied by an
examination of the locality, removed there with his family.
The pirates in the sea touched at this port to take water,
and being aided and encouraged by ParimiSura they came
there to sell their stolen goods. Thus it grew to be a
commercial centre, and in two years the population rose to
2000. ParimiSura named the settlement Malacca. Gradually
merchants from Fuse (in Sumatra) and Bengal came to trade
there, and its importance rapidly increased. Purimisura died
seven years after his settlement at Malacca, leaving a son
called Xaquondarxa (Sekandar Shah). Although the prince was
a Hindu, he had married the daughter of the king of Pase who
had adopted the Muhammadan religion a short while ago.
Either at the request of his wife, or at the instance of his
father-in-law, it was not long before he himself became a
convert to Islam. After he had several children, the king, named
Sekandar Shah, paid a visit to the Chinese emperor. He
became the vassal of China, brought home a seal as a token
of his vassalage, and obtained permission to coin tin money.
He died shortly after his return and was succeeded by
Modafaixa (Muzafar Shah). He conquered Kainpar ( in E.
Sumatra ), Pam (Pahang), Dandargiri (Indragiri), and other
countries, and converted their kings by force to Islam. He
raised Malacca to a great power, and under his son
Sultan Masrusa (Mansur Shah) and grandson Alaoadim
(Alau d din) the kingdom became one of the richest and most
famous.

'Alau d din's successor Sultan Mahamet (Muhammad) repu-
diated allegiance to Siam and Java, and declared himself a
vassal to China. Thereupon, the king of Siam sent a fleet
49

386 END OF HINDU RULE IN MALAY PENINSULA

against him, but it was completely defeated. This took
place 22 years before the conquest of Malacca by Albuquerque
(i.e. in 1489 A.D.)

'A period of 90 years intervened between the time when
Malacca became inhabited and its conquest by Albuquerque.
At that time Malacca and its suburbs had about a hundred
thousand inhabitants/

The account of De Barros varies a little from the above.
He describes Paramisara as a fugitive noble from Java, instead
of the deposed king of Palembang, and it was the invasion
of the king of Siam, and not of the chief of Patani, that
forced him to leave Singhapnra. With this exception, the
two accounts generally agree, except that De Barros places
the foundation of the city 253 years before the arrival of
the Portuguese in India. He also refers to hostilities between
Siam and Malacca, and the acceptance of Siamese suzerainty
by Sekandar Shah. This evidently explains the passage in
Commentaires d' Albuquerque that Sultan Muhammad repu-
diated allegiance to Siam.

The Chinese accounts corroborate the above version, at
least in its general outline. Thus, Ma Huan, writing in
1416, observes that the king and people of Malacca are
Muhammadans 1 , and as we shall see later, this refers to the
reign of Sekandar Shah.

The most comprehensive account is given in the History
of the Ming Dynasty from which we quote the following
extracts. 9

'In 1403 the emperor sent the eunuch Yin Ch'ing as
envoy to this country with presents. There was no king in
the country, and it was not called a kingdom, but it belonged
to Siam, to which it paid an annual tribute of forty taels

1. Groeneveldt Notes, p 123. T'oung Pao (igi5)> P- 115.

2. Groeneveldt Notes., pp. I29ff. The account is supplemented
by other sources, to which references will be made in the footnotes.

SUVARNADViPA 387

of gold. The chief, called Pai-li-mi-su-ra l , sent envoys to the
imperial court along with Yin Ch'ing.

'In 1405 these envoys arrived at the imperial court. The
Emperor praised their master and appointed him king of
the country of Malacca. The envoys said that their king
wished his country to be a district of the empire, bringing
tribute every year. The emperor gave his assent.

'The king of Malacca sent envoys with tribute in 1407
and 1408. In 1411 he came to the court with his wife, his son
and his ministers. 2 His nephew visited the imperial court
in 1412.

'In 1414, the king's son Mu-kan-sa-u-ti-r-sha came to court
and said that his father had died. He was appointed to

1. The name is transcribed as Pai-li-su-ra by Groeneveldt, but
it has been corrected as Pai-li-mi su-la by Pelliot (T'oung Pao, Vol. XXX,
I933 P- 389).

2. Rockhill has referred to slightly differing Chinese accounts
of this event. He notes that Hsmg Cha Sheng Lan places the voyage in
1415, but this is evidently an error according to Pelliot (T'oung Pao,
I933>P- 398).

"Tung hsi yang Kao says that in 1405, the ruler of Malacca,
Si-li-pa-erh-su-la, sent a petition to the Ming Court asking to become
a feudatory. It was in response to this request that Cheng Ho was
sent in 1409. The king, his successor, who went to China in 1411, was
called, the same work says, Pa-li-tieh-su-la p .

In this connection Ma Huan gives the following account :
"In A. D. 1409 the eunuch Cheng- Ho notified the imperial
command that Malacca was raised to the rank of a (Feudatory) kingdom
and presented, in the name of the Emperor, to its head chief a silver
seal, a cap and official robes and declared him king ; on this it
ceased to be a dependency of Siam. The king, taking with him his
wife and son, proceeded to the capital (of China) to express his thanks
for being allowed to offer tribute. The emperor granted him a ship
to return to his country". (Rockhill- T'oung Pao, Serie II, Vol. XVI,
p. 114 and fn. i)

Pelliot places the mission of Cheng Ho in 1408 A. D. (T'oung Pao,
PP-

388 END OF HINDU RULE IN MALAY PENINSULA

succeed him and presented with gold and silks. After this
time they brought tribute every year or every two years.

'In 1419 the king came to court with his wife, his son
and his ministers. He reported that Siam seemed inclined to
attack his country and the emperor accordingly sent an
order to Siam which that country obeyed.

'In 1424 Sri ma-ha-la succeeded after the death of his
father, and came to court with his wife, his son and his
ministers.

'In the year 1431 three envoys arrived, who said that Siam
was planning an attack on their country. The emperor sent
a decree to the king of Siam, ordering him to live in good
harmony with his neighbours, and not to act against the
orders of the court.

'In 1433 the king came to court with his wife, his son
and his ministers. In 1435 he sent his younger brother to
court with tributes.

'In 1445 envoys arrived who asked that the king Sri
Pa-mi-si-wa-r-tiii-pa-sha might obtain a commission for ruling
the country.

'In 1456 Sulthan Wu-ta-fu-na-sha sent tribute and asked
to be invested as king.

'In 1459 this king's son Su-tan Wang-su-sha sent envoys
to bring tribute.

'In 1481 envoys reported to the emperor that the Annamese
who had occupied Champa meditated the conquest of Malacca.

'Some time afterwards the emperor sent two officers with
a commission to invest the son of the late king Ma-ha-mu-sa
as king of the country.

'In 1508 an envoy came to present tribute.
'Afterwards the Franks (Portuguese) came with soldiers
and conquered the country. The king Sultan Mam at ran away
and sent envoys to inform the imperial government of this
disaster. The Emperor issued a decree upbraiding the Franks,
told them to go back to their own country and ordered the
kings of Siam and other countries to assist their neighbour

SUVAENADVlPA 389

in this need ; none of these obeyed, however, and so the
kingdom of Malacca was destroyed/

If we now compare the Chinese account with the native
tradition handed down by the Portuguese, a great deal of
general agreement is easily perceived. First, as to the names
of kings which we place below side by side.

Portuguese Account. Chinese Account.

1. ParimiSura (ParameSvara) 1. Pai-li-mi-su-ra (1403-1414).

2. Sekandar Shah. 2. Mu-kan-sa-u-tir-sha (1414-

1424).

3. Sri Ma-ha-la (1424^.1445).

4. Sri Pa-mi-si-wa-r-tiu-pa-

sha. (1445).

3. Muzafar Shah. 5. Sulthan Wu-ta-fu-na-sha

(1456).

4. Mansur Shah. (d. 1477), 6. Su-tan Wang-su-sha (1459)

5. Alau d din

6. Mahmud(1489) 7. Ma-ha-mu-sa or

Sultan Mamat 1 (1508).

Now, the name of the second king in the Chinese list has
been corrected by Blagden as Mou-Kan-sa-kan-ti-eul-cha or
Muhammad Sekandar Shah 2 . In the name of the first we

1. As noticed above, the name of this king is written in Chinese
annals as Ma-ha-mu-sa and Sultan Mamat. Both are here taken as
Chinese renderings of the name Sultan Muhammad Shah. Blagden,
however, takes the first name as Muhammad, and the second as
Sultan Ahmad, his successor (Actes du XI e congres International des
orientalistes 2 e section, pp. 239-253.)-

The dates of the kings put within bracket are those obtained
from Chinese sources. The grave-stone of Mansur Shah gives the
date 1477 as the date of his death. The date 1489 is given in the
Commentaries of Albuquerque as that of the defeat of Siamese army
by Muhammad. Sultan Alau d din's reign is to be placed between 1477
and 1489 A.D.

2. Op. cit., pp. 245 ff. Cf. Pelliot T'oung Pao, Vol. XXX
(I933)> P- 397, to. 2.

390 END OF HINDU RULE IN MALAY PENINSULA

can easily discern ParameSvara. The third and fourth Chinese

x . x

names are Sri Maharaja and Sri Paramesvaradeva Saha. The

fifth and sixth names can be equated without difficulty to
Muzafar Shah and Mansur Shah. The seventh king is
obviously Mahmud Shah.

Thus the Chinese account adds two Hindu names after the
second king, and omits the name of Alau d din. The explanation
is not far to seek. Now we have seen above, that Sekandar
Shah was the first ruler of Malacca to be converted to Islam
by marrying a Muhammadan wife. It is apparent that he was
succeeded by two Hindu kings, either his brothers, or sons by a
Hindu wife, before his Muhammadan son Muzafar Shah
ascended the throne. Their names were obviously omitted in
the later Muhammadan tradition because they were Hindus. 1

The explanation of the omission of the name of Alau d din
is also furnished by the Chinese account. After the embassy
sent by Su-tan Wang-su-sha ( Sultan Mansur Shah ) in 1459
A.D., there is a long gap before the next embassy was sent
in 1481. The name of the king who sent this embassy is not
mentioned, and there is no necessity to assume that he was
Su-tan Wang-su-shah. The next king Ma-ha-mu-sa, is also
simply referred to as the son of the late king. This explains the
absence of the name of king Alau d din in the Chinese annals.

We may thus draw up the following list of kings of
Malacca :

1. ParameSvara (1403-1414 A.D.)

2. Sekandar Shah (1414-1424 A.D.)

3. SriMa-ha-la (1424-c. 1445)

I. Blagden ( op. cit. ) thinks that the two Hindu names were
those of Muzafar Shah ; but the Chinese annals say that in 1445 king
Sri Pa-mi-si-wa-r-tiu-pa*sha asked for a commission to rule the
country, while eleven years later, Sulthan Wu-ta-fu-na-sha asked to be
invested as king. It is, therefore, difficult to identify these two kings.
The native chronicles, consulted by Yalentyn, also put some Hindu
kings between the reigns of Sekandar Shah and Muzafar Shah
( Ferrand, op. cit,, p. 462 ),

SUVARNADVIPA 391

4. Sri Pa-mi-si-wa-r-tiu-pa-sha (c. 1445-c. 1456)

5. Sultan Muzafar Shah (ace. c. 1456 A.D.)

6. Sultan Mansiir Shah (c. 1459 to 1477 A.D.)

7. Sultan Alau d din.

8. Sultan Mahmud (was reigning in 1489

A. D., and ruled till
1511 A. D.)

Having thus established a general agreement between
the Chinese and native sources (handed down by Albuquerque)
regarding the succession of kings, we may next proceed to
discuss the date of the foundation of the kingdom of Malacca.
The History of the Ming Dynasty makes it quite clear that
Pai-li-mi-su-ra founded the town towards the beginning of the
fifteenth or end of the fourteenth century A.D. It is expressly
stated that in 1403 A.D. Pai-li-mi-su-ra had not yet obtained
the rank of king, and he was a mere tributary chief under
Siam. This is confirmed by two other Chinese accounts,
Ying Yai Sheng Lan of Ma Huan (1425-1432 A.D.) and
Hsing Cha Sheng Lan (1436) which state that Malacca was
raised to the rank of a kingdom in 1409 A.D. 1 by imperial
command.

The date given in 'Commentaires d 'Albuquerque' is in entire
agreement with this. It says that the country formerly
belonged to Siam, and Malacca became a kingdom about 90
years before the arrival of Alfonso d'Albuquerque. As
this latter event took place in 1511 A.D., the foundation of
the kingdom goes back to about 1421 A.D. As 90 years are
put as merely a round number with an express qualification
'more or less', the agreement between the two sources may
be regarded as complete.

Now both the sources also agree in stating that previous
to this the region belonged to Siam. This is confirmed by the
fact, noted above, that the Palatine Law of Siam, enacted
in 1360 A.D., included Malacca among the dependencies of the

i. T'oung Pao, Ser. II. Vol. XVI (1915), pp. H4i n8.

392 END OF HINDU RULE IN MALAY PENINSULA

country. If we believe in this, we have to dismiss the native
legends concerning the origin of the name Malacca, as have been
handed down by the Portuguese authorities. Thus we read in
the Commentaries of Albuquerque :

"This Parimilura gave the name of Malacca to the new
colony because, in the language of Jaoa (Java), when a man of
Palimbao flees away, they call him Malayo ; and since
he had come to that place fleeing from the kingdom of
Palimbao, of which indeed he once was king, he gave the place
the name of Malacca. Others say that it was called Malacca
because of the numbers of people who came there from one
part and the other in so short a space of time, for the word
Malacca also signifies 'to meet', and therefore they gave it
the name of city (of Malacca) in contradiction (to the other
meaning of 'fugitive')- Of these two opinions let each one
accept that which he thinks to be the best, for this is the
truth of the matter."

Nobody need take seriously this kind of popular explanation
of the origin of the name of a city which afterwards became
so distinguished 1 . We must also take due note of the mass
psychology which seeks to ascribe the foundation of a city
to the ruler under whom or whose family it came to achieve
greatness or distinction. The case of Lengkasuka furnishes
an exact analogy in both these respects. Here, again, the
native Malay tradition, recorded in the Hikayat Maron
MahavamSa, ascribes to him the foundation of the city, and
gives a popular etymology of the name. As Ccedfcs has
pointed out, the inscription of Rajendra Cola and the discovery
of the old ruins in the neighbourhood, reaching back
to the fifth century A.D., completely falsify the popular
legends 8 .

1. Valentyn, who dereved his information from native chronicles,
states that Malacca was named after a tree ( Mirobolan ) ( Ferrand,
op. cit., p. 461 ).

2. B.E.F.E.O., Vol. XVIII, No. 6, pp. 12-13.

SUVARNADVIPA 393

In respect of Malacca, too, while we may assign the growth
of an important kingdom on that site to early fifteenth
century A.D., we need not date the foundation of a city under
that name also to the same period. According to the popular
version, there was only a village of twenty or thirty fishermen
at the time when ParameSvara laid on it the foundations of
the city of Malacca, and he survived it only for seven years.
His death took place, according to the reliable Chinese version,
some time between 1412 and 1414 A.D. Thus the future
Malacca must have been, according to popular legends, merely
a fishing village at least as late as 1405 A.D. Yet, in 1403 A.D.,
the Chinese emperor regarded Malacca as a port or a capital
of sufficient importance to send his envoy there with presents.
On the other hand, Ma Huan expressly says that the name
Malacca came into use after 1409 A.D., though it was formerly
called 'five islands' and was a tributary state under Siam 1 .
According to a Chinese map of the time of Cheng Ho, probably
prepared by Ms companion Pei Hsin, one of these five islands,
called Yiu-men, was a flourishing centre of trade before the
rise of Malacca 2 .

The popular version about the origin of the city of Malacca
cannot thus be accepted in minor details, and there is no reason
to discredit the Siamese source according to which Malacca
existed in 1360 A.D. It may be noted that Jean De Barros
places the foundation of the city about 1250 A.D., and Valentyn,
following Malay traditions, refers it to about the same period 8 .

While, therefore, we are unable to state when exactly
the city of Malacca came into existence, there is no reason
to reject the broad facts whose authenticity is proved by a
general agreement of Chinese history and native traditions.
We may thus accept the view, that Malacca was raised to an
important kingdom early in the fifteenth century A.D. by a

1. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 123.

2. Journ, China Br. R.A.S., Vol. 21 ( 1887 ), p. 38. Rouffaer,
op. cit., p. 164.

3. Ferrand, op. cit., pp. 432, 461.
50

394 END OF HINDU RULE IN MALAY PENINSULA

chief called Paramesvara. That he was a Javanese Hindu,
belonging either to Java itself or its colony Palembang,
may also be provisionally accepted. The story of emigration,
on a large scale, which followed the flight of king ParameSvara,
from Palembang to Singapore, and Singapore to Malacca,
may or may not be true, but the rise and fall of the Majapahit
empire during 1360 to 1410 A.D., involving important changes
in the political condition both of Palembang and
Malay Peninsula, may easily account for, and may even be
held as conducive to similar migrations of people. According
to some native traditions Singapore was cruelly sacked by
the king of Majapahit, and that caused the flight of Paramesvara
to Malacca 1 .

With Paramesvara began a glorious period in the history
of Malacca. For nearly a century it enjoyed three-fold
distinctions as a great political power, an important commercial
centre, and the stronghold of Islam in the Far East. We shall
separately review these three aspects of the kingdom of
Malacca.

According to the Commentaries of Albuquerque the
kingdom of Malacca was bounded by the kingdom of Keddah
on one side and Pahang on the other. It extended into the
interior as far as the central chain of hills which divided it
from Siam. All these territories formerly belonged to the
kingdom of Siam. 8

Malacca shook off the yoke of Siam as early as 1403 or
1409. Though the Chinese authorities represent it almost as
a vassal state of China, paying tribute to and seeking
investiture from the emperor, it does not denote anything
more than a nominal allegiance or even ordinary diplomatic
compliments paid by the ruler of Malacca to the Chinese
emperor.

1. Malacca Sultanate by R. J. Wilkinson in J. Stf. Br. R.A.S.,
No. 61, p. 67 ; also cf. No. 53, p. 62.

2. Ferrand, op. cit., pp. 411-12.

SUVABNADVlPA 395

The second king, Sekandar Shah, laid the foundations of
the greatness of Malacca. He first of all tried to divert the
trade centre from Singapore to Malacca. With this object he
guarded the Straits of Malacca and neighbouring sea with a
strong flotilla, and compelled the ships passing through it
to take to Malacca instead of to Singapore. As it threatened
complete ruin to the trade of Singapore, the king of Siam
made preparations to fight. Sekandar, however, entered into
an agreement with him. He acknowledged the suzerainty
of Siara, and agreed to pay as tribute a sum equivalent to
the revenues derived from Singapore. In return, all the
islands from Singapore to Pulau Sembilan and the corres-
ponding coastal region were ceded to Malacca. 1 By this
master-stroke of policy Sekandar shah laid the foundations
of the greatness of Malacca on the ruins of Singapore.

Jean De Barros, to whom we owe this detailed information,
no doubt derived his facts from indigenous sources, and it is
impossible not to trace in them the hand of Siamese officials
who wanted to hide their discomfiture by an alleged acknow-
ledgment of the suzerainty of Siam on the part of Malacca.
The History of the Ming Dynasty clearly refers to hostilities
between Siam and Malacca in 1419 A.D. in the reign of
Sekandar Shah, and also, after his death, in 1431 A.D.
From the general nature of the case also it would appear
more likely that hostilities continued between the two countries,
rather than that Malacca accepted the suzerainty of Siam.
In any case the suzerainty of Siam must have been more
nominal than real, and even that was repudiated, as Barros
himself affirms, 8 by the successors of Sekandar.

An idea of the political importance of Malacca may be
formed from a passage in the History of the Ming Dynasty
concerning Java, which has been quoted above. It says that
shortly before 1415 A.D. the king of Malacca claimed

1. De Barros ; Ferrand, op. cit, p. 437.

2. Ibid., p. 438.

396 END OF HINDU RULE IN MALAY PENINSULA

possession of Palembang, which was then under Java, falsely
pretending that he had an order to this effect from the
Chinese emperor. The emperor informed the king of Java
that he had issued no such orders. 1 This shows that
Malacca was now aspiring to occupy the position of supremacy
which Java lately held in the Archipelago.

That the apprehensions of China and Java were not
unfounded is clearly proved by the conquest of Pahang, in
the Peninsula, and of Kampar and Indragiri in Eastern
Sumatra by Muzafar Shah. When kings of Pahang and
Indragiri revolted in the next reign, they were defeated and
their tribute was doubled."

According to Sajara Malayu 3 Muzafar defeated the
Siamese who attacked Malacca both by land and sea. He
was the first ruler of Malacca who was designated as Sultan
by the Chinese and the Portuguese. The next king Mansur
extended the power of Malacca still further, both in the
Peninsula and in Central Sumatra. In 1489 the fleet of Siam
was again completely defeated by Sultan Mahmud. 4

Sultan Mahmud who thus gave promise of a vigorous and
prosperous reign was destined to bring his kingdom to utter
ruin. This was mainly due to his personal character, which
was marked by vanity and cruelty. He killed his own son
and uncle, and no less than seventeen nobles who were all
related to him. He then plundered their wealth and took
their women to his own harem.

The Sultan was addicted to opium and left the cares of
government to his 'Bendahara' and maternal uncle Sri

1. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 37.

2. Albuquerque. Ferrand, op. cit. pp. 421-2.

3. Quoted by Rouffaer, B.K.I., Vol. 77. (1921), p. 588.

4. Albuquerque. Ferrand, op. cit. p. 423. I do not know on
what authority Krom gives the date as about 1500 A.D. ( Geschiedenis"
-p. 454* )

SUVAENADVlPA 397

Maharaja Tun Mutahir. The term Bendahara, perhaps derived
from Sanskrit Bhandagarika, was the designation of a
minister who had by this time practically usurped the royal
power in Malacca.

The rapid growth of the power of Malacca naturally brought
it into conflict with Java. In 1509 Malacca was expecting an
invasion from Java. But before that could materialise, Malacca
met with a tragic end in an unexpected manner.

In 1509 a few Portuguese ships arrived at Malacca. At
first they were well received, but subsequently the Bendahara
imprisoned twenty Portuguese and refused to set them at
liberty. After the departure of the Portuguese ships, the king
quarrelled with the Bendahara and killed him. When the
country was thus passing through a period of turmoil and
confusion, Albuquerque reached Malacca with a strong fleet
(July 1511) to avenge the wrongs done to his countrymen.
The Sultan conceded most of the demands of Albuquerque.
He set the Portuguese prisoners at liberty and even granted
permission to Albuquerque to build a fort. But the latter soon
came to know of the internal condition of Malacca, and was
joined by Timutaraja or UtimutarSja, the chief of the Javanese
settlers in Malacca. Throwing aside all ideas of compromise
Albuquerque invaded the city which surrendered in August.
The unfortunate Sultan fled, at first to Pahang and then to
Bintan. A few years later, he made an attempt to recover
Malacca, but his efforts proved unsuccessful. 1

Thus perished a great and flourishing kingdom after a
glorious career for about a century. As we have said above,
Malacca was not only the seat of a great political power, but

i. For a detailed account of the capture of Malacca by
Albuquerque, cf. J. Str. Br. R.A.S., No. 61, p. 71. A detailed account
of Malacca and other Malay states under the Muslim Sultans and of
the commercial importance of Malacca is beyond the scope of the
present work. For this, readers may consult R.O. Winstedt A History
of Malaya, chaps. Ill IV,

398 END OF HINDU RULE IN MALAY PENINSULA

also a big centre of trade and commerce. Its commercial
importance is described in glowing terms by the Portuguese
writers who saw it in its days of glory. Duarte Barbosa,
writing in the beginning of the sixteenth century A.D., gives
the following graphic account of its trade and commerce. 1
"Many Moorish (Muhammadan) merchants reside in it and also
Gentiles (Hindu), particularly Chetis who are natives of Choi-
mendel (Coromandel coast) : and they are all very rich and
have many large ships, which they call jungos (junks). They
deal in all sorts of goods in different parts, and many other
Moorish and Gentile merchants flock thither from other
countries to trade ; some in ships of two masts from China and
other places, and they bring thither (here follow a long list of
articles of merchandise). There also come thither many ships
from Java which have four rnasts...From this place many ships
sail to the Molucca islands... They also navigate to Tanasery
(Tennasserim), Peygu, (Pegu), Bengala (Bengal), Palecate
(Pulicat), Cholmendel (Coromandel), Malabar, Cambay and
Aden with all kinds of goods, so that this city of Malacca is
the richest trading port and possesses the most valuable
merchandise, and most numerous shipping and extensive traffic,
that is known in all the world. And it has got such a quantity
of gold that the great merchants do not estimate their property,
nor reckon otherwise than by batons of gold, which are four
quintals each bahar. There are merchants among them who
will take up three or four ships laden with very valuable goods,

and will supply them with cargo from their own property

The king of Malacca has got much treasure, and a large revenue
from the duties which he collects."

In the Commentaries of Albuquerque we find a similar
description of the commercial importance of Malacca as a
trading centre between the east and the west, where the ships,
coming from the Eastern countries such as China, Java,
Formosa, and other islands of Archipelago, exchange cargo with
i. Hakluyt Society Publications, Vol. XXXV ; Fenand, op. cit.,
pp. 407 ff.

SUVARNADVIPA 399

that coming from Northern Sumatra and different ports in India
and Arabia on the west. This city contained 100,000 souls and
extended over a great length along the sea-coast. 1

There are many other evidences to testify to the commercial
greatness of Malacca and its untold wealth. But we need not
pause to refer to them at length. We may next pass on to
describe the part played by this rich and powerful city as a
stronghold of Islam, and a centre of propaganda of that faith
in the Far East. An inscription from Trengganau, dated in
1326-7 (or 1386-7) A.D., proves that Islam had already obtained
a footing in that state. 9 But evidently it did not make any
substantial progress in Malay Peninsula until the kings of
Malacca took up the cause in right earnest. We have already
seen how the second king married a Muhammadan lady and
himself adopted the new faith. Although it is likely, as we
have seen above, that he was followed by two Hindu kings,
under his son Muzafar Shah the new faith was rapidly extended,
partly by force, and partly by persuasion. When he defeated
the kings of Pahang, Kampar, and Indragiri, he converted them
to Islam by force arid married them to three daughters of his
brother. A number of Muhammadan merchants from Gujarat
and Persia settled in Malacca, and, with the patronage of the
king, these became powerful instruments of conversion.
Duarte Barbosa says that 'the Moors of the town and foreign
Moors established their trade in the city, in which they
increased so much in wealth, that they revolted with the country
and caused the neighbouring inhabitants to turn Moors and
they set up a Moorish king over them'. 8 The last statement
may refer to the setting up of Muzafar Shah, in preference
to other Hindu claimants, or it may be a general view, held in
later days, to explain the conversion of the kings of Malacca

1. Ferrand, op. cit., pp. 425. ff.

2. J. Mai. Br. R.A.S. (1924), pp. 252-263,

3. Ferrand, op. cit., p. 407.

400 END OF HINDU RULE IN MALAY PENINSULA

to the Muhammadan faith. The following passage in the
account of Jean de Barros clearly indicates that Malacca was
a strong proselytising centre of the new faith. "At the instiga-
tion of the Moors of Persia and Gujarat who had settled at
Malacca for purposes of trade, the people were converted to
the sect of Muhammad. The conversion rapidly spread among
different nations, and this infernal pest of Islam began to be
propagated, not only in the neighbourhood of Malacca, but
also at Sumatra, Java, and in all the islands situated round
these countries."

In other passages also De Barros gives expression to the
same idea. The merchants from Singapore and Malacca had
spread Islam to Molucca islands about 80 years before the
arrival of the Portuguese i. e. about 1430 A, D. "The pest
of Islam, following by way of commerce," had also reached
the ports of Java and the island of Banda.

There is thus no doubt that the wealth and the commercial
importance of Malacca gave a great impetus to the cause of
Islam in Malayasia, and must be regarded as the deciding
factor in the almost complete triumph of that faith in Malaya
Peninsula.

The last Malay ruler of Malacca became the first ruler of
Johor. By him and his descendants Islam was introduced into
Johor, Riau, and Lengga. It is to be noted that almost all the
present Sultans of Malaya (outside Selangor) claim descent from
ParameSvara, and they are all followers of Islam.

Even as late as 1537 A. D. vestiges of Hindu culture
still remained at Malacca ; for Hai-yu tells us that 'the people
write with Indian letters/ 8 As Wilkinson observes, "to this
day, when the casual visitor walks from the landing steps to
the Stadt-house, he can sec on the slopes of the hill a weird
image of a Makara, the sole surviving relic of the time when
the ruler of Malacca was still a Hindu." 3

i. Ferrand, op. cit., p. 438. 2. Ibid , p. 428.

3. Wilkinson, J. Str. Br. R.A.S., No, 61, p. 68,

Chapter III.

END OF HINDU RULE IN JAVA.

We have seen above how Islam had obtained a footing in
the northern coast of Sumatra and the kingdom of Malacca, and
how from these centres it gradually spread all over Malayasia.
The new faith also penetrated into Java, following mainly
the line of trade mid commerce. The accounts of the Chinese
traveller Ma Huan (1416 A. D.) clearly indicate that while
the Muhammadans formed an important colony in Java, mainly
composed of foreign traders, permanently settled there, they
had not as yet acquired any political power in the country. 1

The spread of Islam in Java is also indicated by a few
inscriptions on grave-stones. The earliest one at Leran, dated
A. D. 1102 or 1082% is that of a daughter of Meiniun. It has
been suggested that the inscribed stone was brought from outside
to Java at a later date. Even if that were not the case, this
isolated instance does not enable us to form any general
conclusion, as it merely refers to a private individual, perhaps
a relation of a Muhammadan merchant trading in Java. The
grave-stone of Malik Ibrahim at Gresik is dated in 1419 A. D.*
The popular tradition regards him as a preacher of Islam,
and this may well be the case. The grave-stone of Majapahit,
traditionally ascribed to Putri Champa, a Cham princess and a
queen of Majapahit, is dated in 1448.* As we shall see later,
she plays an important part in the traditional account of the

1. Groeneveldt -Notes, P. 49; Rockhill, Toung Pao, Serie II.,
Vol. XVI (191 5)> P- 242.

2. Moquette in Congres I, pp. 391-399. T.B.G. Vol. 65 (1925),
pp, 668 ff.

3. Schrieke Het Boek Van Bonang, p. 28.

4. Rapporten, 1907, pp. 42 ff,
51

402 END OF HINDU RULE IN JAVA

downfall of Majapahit, though her date is given therein as
1398. But there is no certainty that the grave is really that
of the queen.

It appears, however, from the Portuguese accounts 1 that
towards the close of the fifteenth century some of the
harbours of Java were in the hands of Muhammadans, most
probably Javanese converts. But they still recognised the
authority of the Hindu king, and there is no reason to suppose
that the latter had suffered much in power or prestige.
In 1509 the great Sultan of Malacca was afraid of an invasion
by the king of Java, a fact which testifies to the latter's power
and command over the sea 3 . Apart from the political rivalry
referred to before, the immediate cause of the dispute between
Malacca and Java is not known from the Portuguese accounts.
There was an intimate intercourse by way of trade between
the two countries, and a large number of Javanese lived in
Malacca. It was the head of the Javanese colony in Malacca
that treacherously helped Albuquerque in conquering that
kingdom from Sultan Mahnmd. When Albuquerque was
returning from Malacca (1512 A.D.), the king of Java sent an
envoy with presents, and promised him assistance in his wars
against the Sultan on the ground that the latter subjected the
Javanese subjects in Malacca to heavy extortion. The Javanese
king always acted in a friendly manner towards the Portuguese
and sought to establish an alliance with them. In this connection
Castanheda has made the following remarks about the king
of Java : "The king of Java is a heathen (i.e. neither Christian
nor a Moor ; in other words, a Hindu). Ho lives inland, is
a great king, master of large territory and people. On the
sea-coast arc Moorish (Muhammadan) kings, subject to the

1. The accounts of the Portuguese and other European writers
have been taken from the summary given by Krom ( Geschiedenis, pp.
449 ff.); cf. also Tiele in B.K.I , 1878, pp. 321-420. Rouffaer in B.K.I,,

1899, PP- U 9 ff -

2. Journ. Str. Br. R.A.S., Vol. 17 (1886), p. 130, T.B.G., Vol. 58

(1919)* P- 426.

SUVARNADVIPA 403

authority of the king. They some time rebel against the king,
but are again subdued by him."

The Portuguese have preserved some detailed accounts of
one of these Javanese sea-lords on the coast. After the
departure of Albuquerque, the Portuguese Admiral Perez
d'Andrade had driven Pati Katir, a Javanese sea-lord, from
the neighbourhood of Malacca, and forced him to proceed to
Java. Pati Unus, chief of Japara, in Java, was an ally of
Pati Katir, and, unaware of the defeat of the latter, he proceeded
against Malacca with hundred ships mostly manned by Javanese
from Palembang. Poroz d'Aiidrade defeated this Javanese
fleet after a heavy fight, but Pati Unus broke through the
Portuguese line and safely reached his own country. He placed
his ships on the sea-beach as a memorial to that fight. His
brave deeds were talked about for long and he later became
king of Demak.

A few months later, a Portuguese ship, returning from
Moluccas islands, was stranded on the Javanese coast near
Tuban. A ship was sent out from Malacca to bring the goods,
and its captain Joao Lopez Alvim was received in a friendly
manner by Pati Unus at Sidayu. Probably Pati Unus dared
not act in a hostile manner as the Javanese king was a friend
to the Portuguese . After the return of this ship, Ruy de
Brito, the Portuguese governor of Malacca, wrote as follows to
king Manuel in January, 1514 : "Java is a great island. It has
two Kafir kings ; one, the king of Sunda, the other the king of
Java. The sea-coast belongs to Moors, who are very powerful.
Great merchants and nobles call themselves governors of these
places. They are very rich and possess many ships. They
always carry on trade with Malacca. Some of them are our
friends, others very hostile." This is the last definite mention
of a Hindu king in Java.

In 1515 the new Portuguese Governor of Malacca planned a
punitive expedition against the Muhammadan chiefs of Javanese
coast, vix. Pati Katir, Pati Unus, and Pati Rodien, but nothing
is mentioned in this connection about the Hindu king in Java,

404 END OF HINDU RULE IN JAVA

But Barbosa, who wrote between 1516 and 1518 A.D., refers
to the great Hindu king of Java, named Pate Udra, who was
yet recognised as suzerain by the Muhammadaii chiefs on the
sea-coast. Barbosa expressly states that when any of these
chiefs revolts, the king forcibly subdues him. It must be
noted, however, that of late, great doubts have arisen regarding
the authenticity of Barbosa's account, and it is doubted whether
his account is not merely borrowed from older books.

The next account of Java we get from the writings of
Pigafctta, an Italian sailor, who accompanied the Spanish
captain Pcrnao de Magalhoes in his famous voyage of
exploration in 1519 A.D. Pigafetta's ship lay before the port
of Timor from the end of January to the beginning of February,
1522, and we find the following entry in his journal : "The
greatest cities in Java arc these : Majapahit, whose king, when
he lived, was the greatest of all these islands and was called
Eaja Pati Unus, Sunda, in this grows much pepper, Daha,
Demak, Gajahmada, Mentaraman, Japara, Sidayu, Tuban,
Gresik, Surabaya, and Bali."

Kouffaer concludes from the above account that Majapahit
was till the last the centre of Hindu power in Java, and
was conquered by the Muslim chief, Pati Unus, some time
before 1522 A,D. There is, however, one difficulty. Barros
says, in connection with the invasion of Malacca by Pati
Unus, that this chief later became king of Sunda. Now,
Henrique Leme found a Hindu chief in Surida in 1522.
It is, therefore, exceedingly improbable that Pati Unus, who
died in the beginning of 1522, should have brought both
Majapahit and Sunda under his control before his death.
Rouffaer thinks that Barros wrongly wrote Sunda instead
of Majapahit, and he therefore takes Pigafetta's account

as true.

Krom, on the other hand, thinks that there is no reason
to conclude that the mistake was necessarily on the part of
Barros, and not of Pigafetta. He rather thinks that Barros,
to whom historical documents were available, is

SUVARNADVlPA 405

reliable than Pigafetta, who wrote his diary in a sea-port
town, mainly from the oral evidence. All that we can
definitely infer from Pigafetta's statement is that there was
no longer a king in Majapahit, but the existence of a Hindu
king at some other place is not incompatible with Pigafetta's
statement.

The terminus ante quern for the downfall of the Hindu
kingdom of Java has been fixed by Krom at A.D. 1528, as
in that year one Hindu chief Panarukan sent an agent on
his own account to Malacca to establish friendly relations
with that state. Krom thinks that this fact is incompatible
with the existence of a central Hindu ruling authority in
Java. Thus the fall of Majapahit, or rather of the Hindu
authority in Java, may be dated between 1513, or 1515 (if we
may believe in Barbosa's account), and 1528 A.D.

The Portuguese and other European accounts mentioned
above thus give us a general outline of the course of
events leading to the downfall of Majapahit. It appears that
Islam at first made converts of the coastal chiefs, and these
ultimately overthrew the central authority at Majapahit. If
Rouffaer's theory is provisionally accepted, as it appears to
us very reasonable, we may conclude that this overthrow
took place before 1522 A.D., and was mainly the work of
Pati Unus, chief of Japara, evidently a Javanese coastal
chief converted to Islam, who had already distinguished
himself in daring naval fights against the Portuguese.

From Java itself we possess no trustworthy records for
the history of this period. There are only some native
traditions which profess to give a detailed account of the
Muslim conquest of Majapahit. While there is no doubt that
they possess a kernel of historical truth, they are so full
of improbable legends and fancies of supernatural charac-
ter, that it is absolutely impossible to rely upon them as
historical sources, except in a very general way. We give
below a summary of these accounts,

406 END OF HINDU RULE IN JAVA

1. Babad Tanah Javi. 1

'Bravijaya, the last king of Majapahit, married a princess
of Cempa. A sister of the queen was married to a Muslim and
had two sons, Rahmat and Santri. Now this Muslim converted
the queen to Islamic faith and sent his two sons to her.
Rahmat married the daughter of a chief (Tumenggung) of
Vilvatikta, while his brother Santri married the daughter of
Arya Teja, the chief of Tuban. The two brothers settled
respectively at Ngampel (Surabaya) and Gresik. Rahmat
became afterwards celebrated as the first apostle of Islam
in Java, made many proselytes, and constructed the first
mosque ever built in Java.*

'King Bravijaya had a second queen, a raksasl (monster),
by whom he had a son Arya Damar. Arya Damar was sent
by his father to govern Palembang and was accompanied
there by the third queen, a Chinese. This Chinese queen
bore a son, Raden Patah, to king Bravijaya, and another, Raden
Usen, to Arya Damar. Raden Patah and Raden Usen went
to Java. Patah married the granddaughter of Rahmat and
settled at Bintara (Demak). Raden Usen went to the king
of Majapahit, who made him the chief of Terung, and
appointed him as commander of his forces. The king also
sent for his son Raden Patah and made him governor of
Bintara.

'In the meanwhile came a certain Seh Walilanang to
Surabaya, and a princess of Balambangan bore him a son,
known later as Sunan Oiri. Suiian Giri became a pupil of
Rahmat and married his daughter.

'By the patronage of these and other chiefs, related to them,
the new faith spread rapidly. Now king Bravijaya sent his
minister (pati) Gajah Mada against Sunan Giri. The latter

1. A summary is given by Brandes (Par., pp. 211 ff.)

2. Crawfurd History of the Indian Archipelago, Vol, II,
p. 309.

SUVARNADVIPA 407

frightened away his enemy by a show of miraculous power.
After the death of Giri royal forces came again and dug up
his tomb. But a swarm of bees arising therefrom drove back
the royal force. Raden Patah, instead of joining his father,
now formed a coalition with the other Muhammadan chiefs,
and proceeded against Majapahit. King Bravijaya died, and the
suzerainty of Majapahit passed over to Demak after a rule of
forty days by Giri. Thus Raden Patah became the first Sultan
of Demak/

II. Serat Kanda. 1

'It names Angkavijaya as the last king of Majapahit, and
refers to his family relations, as in Babad Taiiah Javi, with
some modifications. Rahinat came to Java with a son, married
a Javanese lady at Kudus, and had by her a son named Undung,
later known as Sunan Kudus. Stories are told of a large
number of Arabs who settled and married in Java, and thus
propagated the Muslim faith. Angkavijaya's queen, the
princess of Cempa, named Daravati, died in 1398, and was
buried in Citravulan according to Muslim rites. Raden Patah
was installed as chief of Demak in 1405. Sunan Kudus organised
a Muslim coalition against Majapahit, and tried to make converts
and secure allies all over the kingdom. G a jah Mada defeated
the rebels at Tuban. A now expedition against Majapahit was
organised by Sunan Kudus, and he was joined by sons of other
Sunans. The result was at first indecisive, but ultimately the
royal force led by the Muhammadan chief of Tcrung, i.c. Raden
Usen, brother of Raden Patah, defeated Sunan Kudus. The
king sent reinforcements under Kalungkung, his son by a
Balinese princess, but his other sons, including the chief of
Demak, who had become Muslims, now joined the enemy. The
son of Sunan Kudus now became the head of the Muhammadan
coalition. Aided by all sorts of supernatural means, the
Muhammadan army captured and destroyed Majapahit, in 1476

i. Brandes Par., pp. 223 ff.

408 END OF HINDU RULE IN JAVA

A. D. The king took shelter in Sengguruh in 1477 A. D.
Kalungkung made a last stand there, but was defeated. The
king fled to Bali, followed by Kalungkung and Gajah Mada,
and Sengguruh was destroyed in 1478 A.D. Patah, who took
the title of Panembahan, returned to Demak and became the
chief of Java, and the faith of Islam was established
everywhere/

While there is no doubt that the details given in the
above traditions, specially the dates 1 , are untrustworthy,
we may nevertheless trace some historical basis, so far as
the general picture is concerned. Properly analysed, and
divested of all unnecessary details, the two stories lead to
the presumption that Islam was spreading, at first in the
coastland, by way of commerce, and gradually in the
interior, by marriage relations and other peaceful means.
Thus we find that the dethroned Muslim chief of Pase, Zain-
ul-Abedin, took refuge with the king of Java who was
related to him. The royal family apparently also contained
some converts to the new faith, and the story of the Cein
queen may be a fact. By these means Islam got a firm hold
on a number of chiefs, as well as members of royal family
and high officials at court. When they felt themselves power-
ful enough, the members of the new faith naturally tried to
oust the king as he steadily refused to give up his own
religion. It seems to be almost certain, that the Hindu
kingdom fell as a result of internal disruption brought on by
the clash of religious beliefs, and not by any organised
Muslim invasion from outside. The traditions even connect
the new Muslim ruling dynasty with the old (for Raden Patah
was the son of the king of Majapahit), but this may or may
not be true. The episode of Girlndravardhana also makes
it extremely doubtful if Majapahit was still the chief seat of
Hindu authority. Even if it were so, it is by no means certain

i, The dates of Putri Cam pa and the downfall of Majapahit are
palpably wrong ; see ante.

SUVARNADVlPA 409

that the fall of Majapahit meant the downfall of the Hindu
authority in Java. The Sengguruh episode seems to show that
even after the Hindu king had lost Majapahit, he held out
for some time in the eastern part of Java, and only a second
defeat compelled him to leave Java and seek shelter in Bali.
The story of the destruction of Majapahit is also not borne
out by facts. A copperplate, dated 1541 A. D., is expressly
said to be written at Vilvatikta. 1 There is no valid reason
to suppose that it refers to any place other than the famous
city of that name, which, therefore, existed till at least the
middle of the sixteenth century A. D. Of course, there is no
doubt that having lost its political and commercial supremacy
it gradually dwindled in importance.

The Muhammadan conquest of Majapahit was followed
shortly by that of Sunda. It is clear from the Portuguese
accounts that by Sunda they meant the kingdom of Pajajaran.
As would appear from the Portuguese accounts, quoted above,
the cause and process of Islamic conquest were nearly the
same in both Majapahit and Sunda (Pajajaran). In the case
of Sunda, however, we can more definitely ascertain the date
of the overthrow of the Hindu kingdom.

As noted before, in A. D. 1522 Henrique Lcme visited the
Hindu king of Sunda, called Samian (i.e. Sanghyang), who was
friendly to the Portuguese merchants coming to his harbours.
As a result of this visit, the Portuguese obtained the right of
building a fort at Kalapa (near modern Batavia), The
Portuguese could not carry this project into execution for four
years, and when at last in 1520 they came back to Sunda,
they found it under a Muhammad an ruler, named Falatehan,
who had come from Pase in Sumatra, and conquered the
kingdom with the help of the king of Japara. The Portuguese
had to return without accomplishing anything. Thus Sunda
must have passed into the hands of Muhammadan rulers
some time between 1522 and 1526 A. D. Whether Pati Unus,

i. T.B.G., Vol. 55. (1913), PP. 257 ff.
52

410 END OF HINDU RULE IN JAVA

chief of Japara, was its conqueror, as Barros states, has been,
as noted above, doubted by Rouffaer. But even according to
the later Portuguese accounts, the chief of Japara L e. Pati
Unus, who died in 1522, or his son, had some hand in the
conquest. There is nothing improbable in the assumption that
Pati Unus, aided by other Muslim chiefs, overthrew Sunda
and Majapahit about the same time, and in that case Falatehan,
one of the confederate chiefs, might have been ruling in
Sunda, while Pati Unus was ruling in Majapahit. In any case
it is certain that the Hindu kingdom of Sunda was overthrown
by the coastal Muhammadan chiefs between 1522 and 1526 A.D.

The overthrow of Majapahit and Sunda dealt a death-blow
to the Hindu culture and civilisation which had flourished
in Java for well-nigh fifteen hundred years.

Hindu civilisation, and even Hindu rule, however, did not
vanish altogether, but maintained a desperate struggle for
existence in the outlying regions, in the east as well as in tho
west. The archaeological remains on mounts Willis, Lavu,
and Merbabu indicate clearly that Hinduism found a last
refuge in these highlands, but were gradually being transformed
by the growing indigenous influence. A detailed study of
the ruined structures and images of these hilly regions to the
west of Majapahit unfolds the steadily declining stages of
Hindu art and religion, leading to the supreme but inevitable
tragedy of their ultimate annihilation by the rising forces of
primitive barbarism 1 .

In the east, the regions around and beyond mount Smeroe
(Sumeru) offered the Hindus a safe retreating place. According
to a Portuguese account, the Muhammadan besiegers of
Pasuruhan were forced to retreat in the middle of the
sixteenth century. Even as late as 1600 A.D. Balambangan
was an independent Hindu State, and remained as such for
nearly two hundred years more.

But although these petty states kept alive the traditions
of Hindu rule in Java, the main currents of that culture now

i. This point has been further discussed in connection with Art.

SUVARNADVlPA 411

shifted to the east, and flowed freely only in the island of Bali,
where the royal family and the aristocracy fled with a
considerable element of the well-to-do people in Java. That
island now possesses the unique distinction of preserving
the old Hindu culture and civilisation, while in Java the old
monuments alone remain to tell the tale of its past glory and
grandeur.

The Islamic conquest of Java was followed by the
introduction of that faith in Madura. The king of Arosbaya,
named Panembahan Siti Luhur, and other members of the
nobility voluntarily accepted the new faith, and thus the
conversion of the whole people took place in a comparatively
short time. This also explains the almost complete destruction
of Hindu temples in that island 1 .

i r Congres I, pp. 264-5.

Chapter IV

END OF HINDU RULE IN BORNEO

We have already seen how Borneo formed one of the
earliest seats of Hindu civilisation. Unfortunately we do not
possess anything like a continuous history of the Hindu
colonisation in Borneo. After the archaeological remains
described above in Book I, Chapter VIII, there is a pretty
long gap of many centuries for which we possess no internal
evidence regarding the Hindu colonists. Only the Chinese
annals throw some light on the obscure period, and we can do
no more than summarise these accounts and draw such scanty
conclusions from them as we reasonably may.

1. Speaking of Po-lo, the History of the T'ang Dynasty
(018-906 A.D.) says that in the year 069 the king of this
country sent an envoy who came to court together with the
envoy of Huan-wang (Siam).

Groenc veldt, who has translated this passage, supplements
the information by the following remarks 1 : "There is of course
not the slightest internal evidence that this passage relates
to Borneo, but all Chinese geographers agreo in assigning it
to this island, which is designated by it to the present day.
We have further no means of ascertaining which part of the
island was meant, and here again the Chinese say it was the
northern coast, from which they have derived their name for
the whole island, just as we have taken Bruni or Brunei for
the same purpose".

Another Chinese history 'Tung Ilsi Yang K'au 2 (1618 A.D.)
refers to the embassy of 669 A.D., but adds that the intercourse
with the land then ceased for a long time. As a matter of fact
the next embassy it mentions is that of 1406 A.D. The king

I. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 101. ?. Ibid, pp, 101-2,

SUVARNADVlPA 413

at that period was originally an inhabitant of Fu-Kien, and
thus evidently a Chinese.

2. The History of the Ming Dynasty (13684643 A.D.)
gives a short account of Bandjermasin, on the south coast of
Borneo. It chiefly describes some of the peculiar manners
and customs of the place.

3. The earliest definite reference to Borneo in the Chinese
annals is contained in Man-Shu, composed in the second half
of the ninth century A.D., which refers to Po-ni having trade
intercourse with Indo-China 1 . The History of the
Sung Dynasty gives a more detailed account of Pu-ni a which
undoubtedly refers to the west coast of Borneo. The fact
that their king bore the title Maharaja proves the Indian
origin of their civilisation. Some of their customs strikingly
resemble those of India, e.g. they used cotton cloth, and for
their marriage presents they first sent the cocoa-tree wine,
then areca nuts, next a finger ring, and lastly cotton cloth or
some gold and silver.

This kingdom came into contact with China for the first
time in 977 A.D., when its king Hiang-ta sent three envoys
to the imperial court. The occasion of this embassy is thus
explained by the king himself in a letter which he sent with
the envoys to the emperor.

"I knew before that there was an emperor, but I had no
means of communication. Recently there was a merchant,
called P'u Lu-hsieh, whose ship arrived at the mouth of my
river. I sent a man to invite him to my place and then he
told me that he came from China. The people of my country
were much delighted at this, and preparing a ship, asked
this stranger to guide them to the court".

The king added in the letter that he intended to send
tribute every year. But the next reference that we come

1. Pelliot, B.E.F.E.O., Vol. IV, p. 287, f.n. 2.

2. Groeneveldt Notes, pp. 108-110,

414 END OF HINDU RULE IN BORNEO

across is about hundred years later. In the year 1082 their
king Sri Ma-dja ( Sri Mah&rfija ) sent again an envoy to
bring as tribute products of the country.

It is evident, however, that the first embassy of 977 A.D.
led to the opening up of a regular trade between Pu-ni and
China. For the History of the Sung Dynasty includes it
among the list of countries whose ships frequented the ports
of China. 1

We next hear of Pu-ni in the thirteenth century A.D. from the
accounts of Chau Ju-kua*. He describes in greater detail the
manners and customs of the people, which show an undoubted
Hindu element. Chau Ju-kua expressly states that the people
worshipped Buddha. According to Chau Ju-kua it was an
independent kingdom.

More than hundred years later, Wang Ta-Yuen 8 (1349 A.D.,)
writes about Pu-ni, that its people worship Buddha images
and possess unusual skill in arithmetic and book-keeping.
This is an unmistakable evidence that at least a part of the
people of Borneo possessed some amount of culture and
civilisation, and that of Hindu origin.

But Pu-ni could not long maintain its independence, and
was conquered by Java some time before 1370 A,D. We learn
from Chau Ju-kua, that Tafijungpura in south-west Borneo,
was already a dependency of Java. The same place occurs
in the list of territories conquered by Krtanagara and Gajah
Mada, as we have seen above. It was evidently from this
base that Java extended her influence over the rest of the
island, till by 1365 A. D. a considerable portion of Borneo
was included in the empire of Majapahit (see Bk. Ill, ch. VI).
But in A.D. 1371 the king of Pu-ni, Ma-Mo-sha, sent a high
official to the court of the emperor with a memorial and
presents.* The facts supplied by the History of the Ming

1. T'oung Pao, Ser. II. Vol. XV (1914), P- 420.

2. Chau Ju-kua, pp. I55-I57*

3. T'oung Pao, Ser. II. Vol. XVI. (1915), p. 265. 4. Ibid.

SUVARttADVlPA 415

Dynasty regarding the allegiance of Pu-ni, at first to Java,
and then, from the beginning of the fifteenth century, to China,
have already been referred to above ( Bk. Ill, ch. VI ).
We shall now quote from the History of the Ming Dynasty
further details regarding the intimate intercourse between
Pu-ni and China during the fifteenth century A.D. 1

"In the winter of the year 1405 the king Maradja (Maharaja)
Ka-la sent envoys to bring tribute and the Emperor sent
functionaries to invest him as king of the country and gave
him a seal, a commission, and silks of various colours. The
king was greatly delighted, and embarking with his wife,
his younger brothers and sisters, his sons, daughters and
functionaries went to court".

The king was received with great honour, and feasted at
every place through which he passed, till he reached the capital
in the eighth month in A.D. 1408. During his audience with
the emperor he knelt down and pronounced a most flattering
address to the suzerain. The king was received with usual
ceremonies and ho and his attendants got suitable presents.

In the 10th month the king died in tho Chinese capital.
The emperor was very much grieved, closed his court for three
days, and sent an officer to perform sacrifices and to give tho
silk required for the funeral. A temple was erected at the side
of the grave, where every spring and autumn an officer sacrificed
a goat.

'The emperor issued an edict to console his son Hia-wang
who was ordered to succeed his father and appointed king of
the country. Hia-wang and his uncle reported that their
country had to give Java a quantity of camphor every year and
begged for an imperial order to Java that this annual tribute
should be stopped, in order that it might be sent instead to the
imperial court. They further said that as they were going home
now, they asked for the Emperor's orders and for permission to
remain at homo a year in order to satisfy the wishes of the

i. Groeneveldt Notes, pp. 110-115.

416 END OF HINDU EULE IN BORNEO

people ; at last they requested that the time for bringing tribute
and the number of persons who were to accompany it, might
be fixed/

"The emperor acceded to all these wishes. He ordered that
tribute should be sent once in three years, and that the number
of persons coming with it should depend upon the kin^s
pleasure. He also gave an order to Java telling them not to
ask any more the annual tribute of this country."

'At the time of taking leave the king and his party got very
valuable presents from the emperor. The eunuch Chang Ch'ieu
and the messenger Chau Hang were sent to escort him. In 1410
the king sent envoys to carry tribute and present thanks for
the imperial favour. The next year Chang Ch'ien was sent
again with rich presents for the king. In 1412 Hia-wang came
to court with his mother. They were entertained with great
honour and received valuable presents. From the year 1415
to the year 1425 they brought tribute four times, but after that
time their tribute-bearers became more rare/

'During the period Wan-li (1573-1619) the king of Pu-ni
died without any male issue. His relatives fought for the
throne, and there was a great war in the country ; at last all
competitors were killed, and then a daughter of the late king
was put on the throne. Since this time, though they did not
bring any more tribute, the intercourse by traders was uninter-
rupted/

This extensive summary of the Chinese history gives us
a very interesting account of the friendly intercourse between
Borneo and China, but it adds but little to our knowledge of
its history and civilisation. There is no doubt that the Chinese
official writer has spared no pains to exaggerate the power and
prestige of the emperor, and to paint him in a too dazzling
light. But all the same he has left the impression that Pu-ni
was a fairly civilised country, and enjoyed some amount of
political authority and prestige.

We may now conclude our account of Borneo with a few
general remarks. It is clear that the Indians had colonised

SUVARNADVIPA 417

different parts of the island during the early centuries of the
Christian era. By 400 A. D. several Hindu states had been
established there, and Hindu religion and culture made their
influence felt. But the history of the progress and development
of the Hindu states and Hindu culture cannot be traced any
further in the absence of positive information on the point.
It is certain that Hindu culture survived to some extent for
more than a thousand years. It seems to be, however,
equally certain, that the stream of Hindu colonisation was
not fed here for a long time from the parent source, and
hence it decayed and was ultimately almost dried up. In other
words, Hinduism 111 Borneo did not possess sufficient vitality to
subdue the native elements for a pretty long time, and so
ultimately the indigenous element prevailed upon the super-
imposed layer of Hindu culture.

It is not absolutely certain that the later Hindu civilisation
in Borneo, as depicted in the Chinese history, was an uninter-
rupted continuation of the early Hindu culture which is
indicated by the archaeological remains. But this seems to
be a more reasonable view than to suppose that there were
fresh streams of Hindu migration at a later period.

An alternative supposition would be to trace the later Hindu
civilisation in Borneo to Java. That Java exercised political
authority in some parts of Borneo as early as the thirteenth
century A.D. is definitely known, and it is easy to conjecture
that Indo-Javanese culture and civilisation should find its way
to Borneo, and influence it to a certain extent. This influence
is quite apparent in the art of later Borneo, and nobody can
possibly mistake it. But it is equally impossible to deny that
some elements even of later civilisation in Borneo are not
Indo-Javanese, and must be traced ultimately to India. Nor
is it necessary to assume, with Krom, that Javanese political
authority extended to Borneo even earlier than the thirteenth
century A. D., in order to explain the traces of Hinduism
noticed in Pu-ni in the tenth and eleventh centuries A. D. 1
I. Krom Geschiedenis, p, 229.
53

418 END OF HINDU RULE IN BORNEO

Before closing the account of Borneo we may briefly refer
to another country named Sulu which was situated in or near
Borneo. Shortly after the year 1368 the people of Sulu
attacked Pu-ni, where they made a large booty and only
retired when Java came with soldiers to assist this country.

In the year 1417 the eastern king of this country Paduka
Pa-ha-la, the western king Ma-ha-la-ch'ih (Maharaja), and
the king of the mountain of Ka-la-ba-ting, called Paduka
Prabu ( Prabhu ), all went with their families to China to pay
homage and tribute. They* presented a letter of gold, with the
characters engraved upon it, and offered pearls, precious stones,
tortoise-shell and other articles.

Embassies were again sent, in 1420 by the western king,
and in 1421 and 1424, by the eastern king. 1

I. The above account is based on the History of the Ming Dynasty ;
cf. Groeneveldt Notes, pp, 103-5.

Groeneveldt identifies Ka-la-ba-ting with the mountain Klaiba-
tangan on the north-eastern coast of Borneo. In that case Sulu or a
part of it must be located in the island of Borneo itself.

Chapter V.
THE BALI ISLAND.

We have already discussed the few data regarding the early
history of Bali that can be gathered from the Chinese sources. 1
This brings us down to the end of the seventh century A. D.
For the next century we possess no definite historical informa-
tion regarding the island. According to a somewhat vague
tradition preserved in Carita Parahyangan, the island was
conquered by the Javanese king SaSjaya. 2 This may possibly
be true. Recent investigations 8 in Bali have yielded quite a
large number of inscriptions on stone and copperplates, and
other antiquities, some of them reaching as far back as eighth
century A. D. Apart from their great importance from the
point of view of political and cultural history, to which we
shall refer below, the inscriptions clearly prove, both by their
language and subject matter, that Bali was a Hindu colony with
distinct characteristics of its own, derived directly from India,
and it was in no way a product of or influenced by the Indo-
Javanese colony or civilisation. The fact that the language of
these inscriptions is old-Balinese and not old- Javanese is enough
to discredit the generally accepted view that Bali derived its
Hindu culture through Java, and we must regard the Hindu
colony in that island as developing independently, and side
by side, with that of Java and other islands in the archipelago.
The most reasonable conclusion, therefore, would be to
regard the Hindu culture and society in Bali, which we find
reflected in these records from the eighth to the tenth

i. Book I. Chap. IX. 2. Book III. Chap. I.

3. Stutterheim Oudheden Van Bali (1929). Epigraphia Balica
Vol. I ( 1926 ). O.V 1934, pp. 28-35. Unless otherwise stated, the
inscriptions mentioned below are to be looked for in these authorities.

420 THE BALI ISLAND

century A.D., as a direct development of the old Hindu
colony and civilisation referred to in the Chinese annals.

The inscriptions, particularly the series of copperplate
Grants, have yielded very interesting information regarding
the political history of Bali. The oldest of them, dated 896
A.D., and found at Bebetin, does not refer to the name of any
king. But two inscriptions discovered at Babahan and
Sembiran, and dated respectively in 915 and 933 A.D., were
issued in the reign of king Ugrasena, who may thus be regarded
as the first historical king of Bali, definitely known to us.
Then follow king Tabanendravarmadeva and Candrabhaya-
singhavannmadeva with dates 955 and 962 A.D. respectively.

We next hear of king Janasadhuvarmadeva, ruling in
A.D. 975, and queen 8ri-Vijayamahadevl ruling in 983. No
particulars are known about any of these. An inscription
recently discovered near Sanoor 1 refers to Sri Kelarivarms,
lord over all neighbouring princes, who overcame Gurun and
other localities. He probably ruled in the tenth century A.D.

Not long after this, the island of Bali was conquered by the
Javanese king DharmavamSa, and was ruled on his behalf by
his predecessor's daughter Mahendradatta alias Gunapriya-
dharmapatnf, along with her husband Dharmodftyanavarmadeva
(or in its shorter form, Udayana), the parents of the famous king
Airlangga.*

Stutterhcim 8 holds the view that Dharmodayanavarmadeva
was a Balinese, who afterwards became a member of the royal
family of Java by his marriage with the daughter of Makuta-
vamgavardhana, and ruled over Bali as Prince-consort of

1. The inscription has been edited by Dr. Stutterheim in Acta
Orientalia, Vol. XII, Pars II ( IQ34 ) PP- 126-132.

The inscription, incised on the upper part of a round monolith
pillar, consists of six lines written in an eastern variety of north-Indian
alphabet of about the tenth century A. D., and of thirteen lines in
Kavi alphabet. According to Dr. Stutterheim the latter belongs probably
to ninth or tenth century A.D.

2. See above, Bk. Ill, Ch, II. 3. B.K.I., Vol. 85 (i99), p. 483.

SUVAKNADVlPA 421

Gunapriyadharmapatni. This view mainly rests upon the fact
that the last three (now four) Balinese kings, mentioned above,
had all of them names ending in Varmadeva. It has been
argued on the other hand, that he was a Javanese chief, who,
on being appointed to rule over Bali, assumed a name in
conformity with the Balinese royal custom. 1

Whatever that may be, there is no doubt that the rule of
Udayana and Mahendradatta introduces a new epoch in the
cultural history of Bali. Henceforth Indo-Javanese culture
makes a deep impress upon that of Bali, so much so that
the culture and civilisation of Bali after 1022 has been regarded
as old-Javanese in character.

The Balinese records from 989 to 1001 A. D. refer to
both Gunapriyadharmapatni and her husband Dharmo-
dayanavarman, but the name of the latter alone appears
in two records, dated 1011 and 1022 A. D. The natural
presumption, therefore, is that the queen died some time
between 1001 and 1011 A.D., and since then her husband alone
ruled in Bali. 8 But a Sembiran copperplate, dated 1016 A.D.,
refers to a queen (ratu) Sang Ajfiadevl. It has been suggested
that 5jSadevl was but another name of Gunapriyadharmapatni. *
But, then, it is difficult to explain why she alone is mentioned,
under a different name and with a lower title 'ratu/ An
alternative suggestion would be to regard Sang Ajnadevl as a
vassal chief, or one ruling independently in some parts of the
island. 4 In any case Udayana must have regained his authority
before 1022 A.D. He evidently died in that year, some time
between the months of Caitra, when he issued the edict, and
Paua, when a record was issued by Sri DharmavamSavardhana

1. Krom*-Geschiedenis 2 , p. 232, fn. 4.

2. Cf. Bk. Ill, Ch. II. p. 263 above.

3. O.V. 1920, p. 132. Stutterheim reads the name as Sang
Ajfiadevi, while Krom gives it as Sangajftadevi ( Geschiedenis 8 pp. 233,
245 ) on the authority of O.V.

4. Korn Het Adat-recht Van Bali (1924), p. 547.

422 THE BALI ISLAND

Marakatapangkaja-SthSnottunggadeva. This king ruled at least
till 1025 A.D. His name indicates that he belonged to the
family of DharmavamSa and was thus a member of the Javanese
royal family. It is, of course, equally possible to hold that
Dharmavaiha was originally a ruler of Bali and then obtained
the throne of Java, possibly by marrying the daughter of king
MakutavamSavardhana. The relationship between Udayana
and his successor Marakatapangkaja-Sthanottunggadeva is not
known, nor is it possible to decide if the latter ruled as an
independent king, or acknowledged the suzerainty of Airlangga,
the Javanese king. 1 The absence of any royal title lends
support to the latter view, and in that case we may hold that
in spite of the catastrophe which overwhelmed the kingdom
of Java about this time, she still maintained her hold over the
island of Bali. In any case, Airlangga ultimately asserted his
full suzerainty over Bali ; so much so, that once he even planned
to divide his kingdom among his two sons by giving Java to
one and Bali to another. This, however, did not take place,
and instead Java itself was divided into two kingdoms, Janggala
and Kadiri, as we have seen above.

Bali, as usual, had its own ruler, but how far it acknow-
ledged the authority of Janggala, it is difficult to say. Ten
copperplate records, bearing dates between 1049 and 1077 A.D.,
refer to a king who was "the youngest child of the goddess, who
is cremated at Burvan, and of the god who is cremated at
BaSuveka". The phrase most probably alludes to Udayana
and his wife Gunapriyadharmapatnl. If this view be correct,

the ruler of Bali between 1049 and 1077 A. D. was a younger

brother of Airlangga. He evidently ruled over the whole
island, as his records are found both in north and south Bali,
from Sangsit to Klungkung.

i. In a recent article Dr, Stutterheim has suggested that ri
Dharmavaihsavardhana, who succeeded Udayana in Bali, is no other
than Airlangga himself, who died in 1049 A.D., and was succeeded in
Bali by his younger brother (B.K.I., Vol. 92, pp. 19$ *?)

SUVARNADVlPA 423

The next ruler of Bali, known from a record of 1098 A.D.,
is named Sri Sakalendaki ring Esana Gunadharma-laksmidhara
Vijayottunggadevi. In this name we have a reminiscence of
that of Gunapriyadharmapatni, the mother of Airlangga, and of
Kana, the reputed founder of the royal family to which
Airlangga belonged. If it were safe to presume anything from
these factors, this ruler of Bali may be regarded as belonging to
that royal house. The same, however, cannot be said of the
two rulers who followed, vix., Sri Suradhipa, with dates 1115 and
1119 A.D., and Sri Jayalakti, with dates 1133 and 1150 A.D. It
is possible that Bali was now altogether independent of Java.

A king Paduka Sri Maharaja Haji Jaya Pangus is known
from thirteen records. One of these is dated in the year 1177
A.D., while the remaining were issued on one and the same day
in the year 1181. In these he appears as the suzerain king,
ruling over a circle of seven states in Bali (Balidvipamandala).
But the genuineness of these records has been justly doubted,
and so no sure conclusion can be based upon them. Next we
hear of two other kings, Sakalendu with a date 1201 A. D.,
and Bhatara ParameSvara and Bhatara Guru Sri Adhikunti
(ja)ketana of 1204 A.D. Shortly after this Bali must have
been conquered by Java. Chau Ju-kua, describing the state
of things in the first part of the thirteenth century A.D., includes
Bali among the fifteen vassal states of Java, though he expressly
adds that Bali and Tanjungpura (South- West Borneo) were the
most important among them.

The internal conflict in Java which ultimately led to the
fall of Kadiri in 1222, and the palace intrigues and revolutions
in the newly established kingdom of Singhasari, gave a good
opportunity to Bali to free itself from the yoke of Java. Of
this period only one king is known to us, Paramesvara Sri
Hyang ning hyang Adilaiicana, ruling in 1250 A.D. But during
the reign of Kftanagara Java again found means to subdue the
neighbouring island. A military expedition was sent to Bali

i. O.V. 1929, pp. 73-78.

424 THE BALI ISLAND

in 1284 A.D., and its king was brought a prisoner before
Krtanagara.

Kptanagara's success was, however, a short-lived one. In

1292 he met with a tragic end, and his kingdom was overthrown
by the chief of Kadiri. Bali must have profited by this respite,
and an indication of this is furnished by the fact that when
the Chinese army returned from its expedition against Java in

1293 A.D., they brought to the emperor, among other things,
a letter in golden characters from the kingdom of Bali, with
rich presents. 1 As we have seen above, it was a deliberate
policy of the Chinese emperor on that occasion to detach the
smaller states from Java and make them transfer their allegiance
to China. With this view envoys were sent to these smaller
states, and there is no doubt that Bali took advantage of it to
substitute a nominal allegiance to China in place of a real
control exercised by Java,

For nearly half a century Bali remained an independent
state. The earliest document for this period, a record of 1304
A.D., is issued by one Bhatara Guru together with his grand-
child Sri Mahaguru. The latter alone issues a charter in
1324. The next charter was issued by Sri Valajayakjtaningrat
with his mother Paduka (Bha)tara Sri Mahaguru in 1328 A.D.
This lady is evidently the same person who is referred to simply
as Sri Mahaguru in 1304 and 1324 A.D. Lastly, we find the
record of Asjiasuraratnabumibanten dated 1337 A.D.

With the growth of the empire of Majapahit attempt was
made to re-establish the supremacy of Java over Bali. Accord-
ing to a tradition preserved in PamaScangah, the struggle had
begun in Jayanagara's reign. The first fruits of this struggle are
to be seen in 1338 A.D., when the Regent Tribhuvanottunggadevl
founded a Buddhist sanctuary in that island. But the battle
was indecisive for a long time. The king of Bali strove hard
to maintain his independence. At last a powerful military
expedition was sent against him in 1343 A.D. According to

i. Groeneveldt Notes, p. 27.

SUVAENADVIPA 425

Nfigara-Kptagama, Gajah Mada distinguished himself in this
expedition. Several historical traditions refer to the details
of the severely fought battle. 1 Ultimately the king of Bali
was totally routed, and his kingdom was added to the growing
empire of Majapahit.

Henceforth Bali formed an integral part of the empire.
Two records of Bali, dated 1384 and 1386 A.D., are issued by
Sri Vijayarajasa, prince of Vengker, and the maternal uncle of
the Javanese king. A third, dated 1398 A.D., refers to him as
Sri ParamesVara who died at Visnubhavana. It is likely,
therefore, that Vijayarajasa represented the Javanese authority
in Bali as a governor or viceroy. The residence of the viceroy
was fixed first at Samprangan and thereafter at Gelgel. The
Majapahit conquest of Bali carried still further the process of
Javanisation of that island which had already begun in the
llth century A.D. Henceforth the two islands are very closely
associated both in politics and culture. This state of things
is clearly reflected in Nag. Kr. Berg has shown how Bali
formed a centre of Javanese literary life, which grew in
importance in the same proportion in which it declined in
Java itself. Bali carried on and developed the traditions of
Java, first as a dependency of Majapahit, and then as an
independent Javanese kingdom.

For, as we have seen above, the king of Majapahit, unable
to withstand the onrush of Islam, took refuge in Bali with

I. In addition to Pamaftcangah ( edited by Berg, 1929 ) the details
of the expedition are referred to in Usana Jawa (pp. 159-162) and Kidung
Sunda. Cf. Berg Mid. Jav. Trad., pp. 103-121 ; Inleidung, pp. 157-9.

According to Pamancangah the Javanese first conquered Bedahulu,
and installed there a chief named Kapakisan. But it taxed all his
strength to bring the rest of the island under his control. The Usana
Jawa refers to simultaneous fighting in North and South Bali, the
latter under the personal supervision of Gajah Mada. According to
Kidung Sunda the fall of Bali became inevitable only when the
auxiliary forces from Sun^a and Madura conquered respectively the
western and eastern forts.
54

426 THE BALI ISLAND

his followers. His example was followed by a large number
of Javanese who found in migration to Bali the only means to
save their religion and culture. Bali thus received a strong
influx of Javanese element, and became the last stronghold of
Indo-Javanese culture and civilisation, a position which it
still happily maintains. It has not only contributed to the
further development of Indo-Javanese culture, but has also
preserved from oblivion much of it which Java herself lost as
a result of the Muhammadan domination.

The subsequent history of Bali may thus be regarded as
merely a continuation of Majapahit. Indeed, the popular
notion in this respect is so strong, that most of the inhabitants
of Bali style themselves, with pride, as Wong Majapahit
or men of Majapahit. Only a few primitive tribes, scattered
in hilly regions, are called by way of contrast 'Bali aga' or
indigenous people of Bali. 1

The later history of the island may be briefly told. 2 A
prince of the royal family of Majapahit made himself overlord
of the island. He assumed the title Dcva-agung Ketut, and
restored peace and order in the country. lie chose Gelgel as
his capital, and there his successors ruled till the end of the
seventeenth century A. D., when the town was destroyed by
the people of Karangasem, and the capital was removed to
Klungkung.

1. These people live in the neighbourhood of Sangsit, in
Krobokan and Sembiran, in the villages of Chempaga, Sidatopa,
Padava, and Tigavasa, to the west of Buleleng, and at Tenangan in
Karangasem. Their religion, though old-Polynesian in character, is
strongly marked by a veneer of Hinduism.

2. For the later history of Bali, cf. Encycl. Ned. Ind. s.v. Bali
and the nine states that arose in the eighteenth century. The literary
traditions about the history of Bali, since the Javanese conquest of
1343, have been discussed by Berg ( Mid. Jav. Trad., pp. 121-175. )
How far these traditions can be relied upon as historical facts is very
doubtful. Some kings like Batu-Renggong undoubtedly played a
prominent part.

SUVARNADVIPA 427

Among the kings of Gelgel, Batu-Renggong occupies a
prominent place. He ruled in the third quarter of the sixteenth
century A.D. In addition to the whole of Bali, he ruled over
Sasak and Sambawa, and a considerable part of Balambangan.
He also proved a formidable enemy of the kings of Pasuruhan
and Mataram, and maintained peace in his kingdom. He
was considered by later generations as the incarnation of
Visnu. He was a patron of letters, and it was during his
reign that the great Javanese scholar Nirartha was settled in
Bali, and there was a great outburst of literary activity among
the Javanese settlers in that island.

The death of Batu-Renggong was followed by a period of
unrest and revolutions in course of which Bali lost all her
foreign possessions. Balambangan proved the bone of
contention between Bali and Mataram, and in 1639 the king
of Mataram invaded Bali. The invasion proved unsuccessful,
and Bali retained its hold upon Balambangan until it passed
into the hands of the Dutch towards the close of the eighteenth
century.

From the very beginning of this period the kingdom of Bali
was divided into several districts, each being placed under a
governor. These governors gradually assumed an independent
position, so that in the eighteenth century Bali was practically
divided into nine autonomous states, #&., Klungkung,
Karangasem, Mengui, Badong, Bangli, Tabanan, Gianjar,
Buleleng, and Jembrana.

The history of Bali during the two following centuries is
merely one of interminable wars among these states. Jembrana
soon ceased to be a separate state, being conquered successively
by Buleleng and Badong. The remaining eight states continued
their inglorious existence till the Dutch conquered them all
and established their supremacy over the whole island. This
conquest of Bali did not, however, prove to be an easy task.
The Dutch suzerainty was first acknowledged by the Balinese in
1839, but many expeditions were necessary before the Dutch
could finally curb the independent spirit of the ruling chiefs.

428 THE BALI ISLAND

In 1908, the Deva-agung of Klungkung, the last heir of the
Emperors of Majapahit, made a final effort to free himself
from the foreign yoke. Even when his palace was besieged
by the Dutch, and there was no hope of success, he refused
with scorn the offer of his enemy to save his life and family
by an unconditional surrender. Remembering the proud
examples of his Ksatriya forefathers, he seized the sacred
sword, and boldly rushed out with his nobles, wives, and
children to meet with an end worthy of his race. Klungkung
fell, and the remaining warlike elements of the place were
interned at Lombok. In 1911 Klungkung was formally
incorporated in the Dutch empire, and with that the Hindu
rule in Bali came to an end.

Chapter VI.

POLITICAL THEORY AND PUBLIC
ADMINISTRATION IN JAVA.

The Javanese Law-books do not contain anything about
administrative law such as we have in Chapter VII of
Manu-Samhita. Consequently the system of administration in
Java is but little known. There are three old-Javanese prose
texts on the political theory and public administration, but
their value as a practical guide to this subject is difficult to
determine. We may begin with a brief reference to them.

1. Kamandaka 1 . An old- Javanese text, in which Bhagavan
Kamandaka explains to his pupils the duties of the king.
The book was also known as Rajanlti. The characters from
the H&mayana and the Mahabharata are cited as illustrations
of the political principles. Yudhisthira, for example, is held
up as an ideal.

2. Indraloka*. In this book BhagavSn Indraloka gives
lessons on politics to his pupil KumarayajSa.

3. Nitipraya 8 . This book describes the duties of a
king towards his enemy. It was communicated by Visnu to
Vy&sa. But there is an introductory episode which runs as
follows :

'King Suparkadeva of Ayodhya was attacked by Aji
Wangbang, whereupon Bhagavan Ratnabhumi gave him the
Nitipraya. In consequence of this Wangbang was defeated,
and his daughter YajSavati was taken prisoner. Ratnabhumi's
son Rfiveya went to heaven, where, through mistake, he
threw a Nagasari flower at Indra, and was changed to a

1. Cat I., Vol. II, pp. 240-43.

2. Ibid., pp. 238-40. 3. Ibid., pp. 243-246.

430 PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION IN JAVA

parrot. In this shape he gave many lessons to Suparka-
deva/

The language of the book is now and then very modern.
According to Raffles, this book is held in very high esteem,
and constantly referred to by the Javanese. Raffles has quoted
a few passages from this work, some of which are given
below 1 .

"A good prince must protect his subjects against all
unjust persecutions and oppressions, and should be the
light of his subjects, even as the Sun is the light of the
world.

"It is above all the duty of a prince to take notice
of every thing going on in his country and among his
subjects.

"It is a disgrace to a prime-minister for any hostile attack
to be made on the country entrusted to his charge without
his knowledge.

"But a good prime-minister is he who is upright in his
heart, moderate in his fear of the prince, faithfully obedient
to all his orders, kind-hearted, not oppressive to the people,
and always exerting himself to the utmost for the happiness
of the people and the welfare of the country.

"And a prime-minister is good beyond measure, who
knows everything that is going on in the country and takes
proper measures accordingly ; who always exerts himself to
avert whatever is likely to be injurious ; who heeds not his
own life in effecting what is right ; who considers neither
friends, family, nor enemies, but does justice alike to all ;
who consults much with his brother officers with whom he
ought always to advise on affairs of business.

"A prince, a prime-minister and the chief officers of the
court should direct the administration of the country with
such propriety that the people may attach themselves to
them ; they must see that the guilty are punished, that the

i. Raffles Java, Vol. I. pp. 305-8-

SUVAENADVIPA 431

innocent be not persecuted, and that all persons falsely
accused be immediately released, and remunerated for the
sufferings they have endured/'

While these texts certainly hold up a high and noble
political ideal they do not throw much light on the actual
system of administration. For this we have to rely upon
the data furnished by the inscriptions, and the following
sketch embodies the result of a study of the available
records.

The absolute power of the king formed the basis of a
state. No form of government other than an absolute monarchy
is ever referred to, and there was never any idea, far less
an attempt, to put any check upon the unrestrained power
of the king. Indeed the king was often conceived as the
incarnation of God, 1 and thus the theory of divine right,
which we find in a fully developed form in Manu-Samhita, 1
had a complete sway in Java. This is further exemplified by
the deification of kings after death. This is accomplished
by making divine images on the model of the king's person,
and always referring to the dead king as god (Bhatara) of such
and such a place, meaning thereby the place of his cremation.

The framework of administration followed the Indian model
to a certain extent. The king was at the head of a state,
but all large kingdoms were divided into smaller units, each
under a governor appointed by the king, and the smallest
unit was formed by a village which had some form of local
self-government under a headman.

The king was surrounded by a large group of officials
whose names occur in inscriptions, specially land-grants, as

1. King Krtanagara is described as a part of divinity and an
incarnation of dharma (Penampihan grant, J.G.I.S., Vol. II. pp. 55 ff).
King Jayanagara is referred to as an incarnation of Visnu (Sidoteka
Grant, J.G.I.S., Vol. II, p. 145).

2. According to Carita Parahyangan, king Niskalavastu Kaficana
scrupulously followed the laws of Manu.

432 PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION IN JAVA

is the case with similar records from ancient India. But in
both cases it is difficult to determine the exact nature and
duties of these various officers. 1

The leading part in the bureacracy was played by certain
high officials, whose number and designation varied at
different periods.

The inscriptions of Central Java refer to two classes of high
officials charged respectively with religious and secular matters.
In Kalasan inscription the former are called AdeSalastrins, also
known by three Javanese designations, viz., Pangkur, Tavan,
and Tirip. In other inscriptions we hear of Pitamahas, who
obviously occupied similar positions.

The civil officials are designated with the title raka
(rakryan), usually in the form raka i (or rake) followed by
a local name.* The exact connection of the official with the
place so named is not clear ; perhaps it denotes in most, if not
in all, cases, his administrative jurisdiction.

The dignity and honour of the title clearly appears from
the fact that even the king and a number of members of the
royal family bore the same title at one and the same time.

1. Readers, unacquainted with Javanese or Dutch, may consult
the English translation of the following inscriptions edited by Mr. H. B.
Sarkar.

(i) An old-Javanese Inscription from Ngabean of the Saka
year 801. (J.G.I.S., Vol. I, p. 38).

(ii) An old-Javanese Inscription of the Saka year 841 (Dacca
University studies, Vol. I, No. i, pp. 102 ff. ).

(iii) An old-Javanese Prasasti from Surabaya of the Saka year
956 (I.H.Q. Vol. XI, pp. 487 ff.)

(iiii) Ten old-Javanese Copper-plates from Sidoteka of the
Saka year 1245 (J.G.I.S. Vol. II, pp 131 ff.).

(iv) The Inscription of Trawulan ( 1280) (I.C., Vol. II. pp.
523 ff). Reference will be made to these in the following pages.

2. Stutterheim held that the term 'rake' is derived from raka + i,
but Poerbatjaraka thinks that rake is derived from rakai, and the latter
from rakryan (T. B. G., IQ33, PP- 162-6).

SDVARNADVlPA 433

In Java it has always been the practice to entrust members
of the royal family, specially the heir-apparent, with high
and important civil functions.

The relation of the king to the place-name following his
rake title is difficult to define. Certain it is that the same
place-name is not added to any other rake-title during the
life-time of the king, though after his death it again forms
part of the rake-title of an ordinary official. In the case of
Airlangga we arc definitely told that as he was formally
consecrated at Halu he got the title rake Halu, and this may
serve as an explanation of the raka-title of many kings of an
earlier date also.

The records of Eastern Java refer to a large number of
officials. The names are mostly Javanese, but we have,
besides Mantri, also two other Indian designations, Scnapati
( conimaiider-iii-chief ) and Senapati Sarva-Jala i.e. admiral.
These records also introduce a stereotyped form of govern-
ment which continued, with slight changes and occasional
modifications, throughout the Hindu period. Next to the king
were three great Mantrls, called Mantri Hino, Mantri Sirikan,
and Mantri Halu ; and after them three chief executive
officers, Eakryan Mapatih, Rakryan Demung, and Rakryan
Kannruhan. Sometimes the titles of these two groups were
combined in one person, as for example in Rakryan Mapatih
Hino, Mahamantrl Sri Ketudhara. Later on, however, the
two groups became distinct, and the former gradually became
ornamental figures, while the chief powers passed to the three
Rakryaiis. During the Majapahit period two more were
added, vix-. 9 Rakryan Rangga and Rakryan Tumenggung,
thus increasing the total number of chief executive officers to
five, known as 'Paficari Vilvatikta' (the five of Majapahit). But
the record of Krtarajasa, dated 1294 A.D., refers to seven
chief executive officers with Rakryan Mantri as the highest
among them. The successive titles of Gajah Mada as Patih
of Kahuripan, Daha, and Majapahit indicate a new class
of functionary of high dignity and great power. Indeed the
55

434 PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION IN JAVA

position of Gajah Mada as the chief minister of the empire
almost overshadowed the authority of the king. But the
danger was averted by the abolition of the post after his
death. A new experiment was then tried, ri,\., the formation
of an inner cabinet consisting of the members of the royal family
(see p. 337 above), which kept the chief direction of affairs in
their own hands.

Besides these high executive officials there were two other
classes of important functionaries, r/*., Dharmadhikaranas
and Dharmadhyaksas.

The Dharmadhikaranas, as in India, denoted judicial
officers. The Sidoteka copper-plate grant of the Saka year
1245 explains the term as "the distinguisher between righteous
and evil 'processes," and the Travulan inscription calls them
'dharmapravakta' and Vyavaharavicchedaka/ i.e. propounders of
law and judges. The inscriptions refer to the following
seven classes of them :

1. Pamget (or Samget) i Tirvan

2. Do Kandamuhi

3. Do Mnnghuri

4. Do Pamvataii

5. Do Jambi

6. Do Kandangan atuha

7. Do Kandangan rare

Dr. F. H. Van Nacrsscn 1 concluded, after a careful study
of all relevant documents, that these seven officials formed the
Sapt-opapatti of Nagara-Krtagama, the first five being Saivitc,
and the last two, Buddhist. As regards the hierarchy of these
officials, so far as we can judge from their respective position in
the list, he observes as follows : 'The Pamget i Tirvan always
heads the list. The two Pamgets, Pamvatan and Jambi, always
come under the other two, Kandamuhi and Manghuri, though
within each group the position of the two officers is sometimes

i. B. K. I., Vol. 90, pp. 239 ff.

SUVARNADVIPA 435

interchanged. The two Buddhist Upapattis (Nos. 6 and 7)
stood apart from the others/

According to the Travulan inscription, the holder of each
of these posts had the. title acarya and was versed in a special
branch of knowledge, such as logic, grammar, or Samkhya
philosophy ; while all of them were 'proficient in Katarama-
nava (i.e. the law-book) and other sacred writings with the aim
of deepening their knowledge regarding the justice or other-
wise of both the litigant parties/

The two Dharmadhyaksas were the Superintendent of the
Siiiva institutions and the Superintendent of the Buddhist
institutions. According to the Travulan inscription they were
charged with the w T ork of supervision for the protection of the
great Brahmanas and the learned. In the Purvadhigama they
are also said to have exercised judicial functions, very much in
the same way as the seven Upapattis, and are named before
them. Dr. Nacrsscn concludes from this that these two classes
had to perform judicial duties of a similar nature, though each
had other additional functions. He also holds that Dharmadhy-
aksas were probably higher in rank than the Dharmadhikaranas
or seven Upapattis.

On the whole, we must conclude that there was a highly
organised and efficient system of bureaucratic administration
in Java under an absolute monarch. The following extract
from the History of the Sung Dynasty (960-1279 A. D.) gives
a general picture of the form of government, as it struck a
foreign observer : "Three sons of the king are viceroys and
there are four functionaries, called Lo-ki-lien ( Rakryan ), who
manage together the affairs of the state, just as the ministers
in China ; these have no fixed pay, but they get from time
to time products of the soil and other things of this kind.
Next there are more than three hundred civil employees, who
are considered equal to siu-tsai (graduates of the lowest degree)
in China ; they keep the books in which the revenue is put
down. They have also about a thousand functionaries of lower
yank, who attend to the walls and the moat of the town, the

436 PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION IN JAVA

treasury, the granaries and to the soldiers. The general of the
army gets every half year ten taels (Chinese ounces) of gold
(between six and seven hundred guilders) ; there are thirty
thousand soldiers who, every half year, arc paid according to
their rank 1 /'

According to Nagara-Krtagama, the relations of the king
took a prominent part in the administration. The country
was regularly surveyed, and the titles of lands correctly
determined with reference to documents. Proper care was
taken of the temples, roads, and waterways, and there was
proper arrangement for regular inspection.

Finally, a word may be said regarding the administration of
the empire. It appears that nowhere except in Bali was there
any idea of direct administration from the capital city of Java.
The dependent states were left free in respect of their own
internal administration so long as they acknowledged the
suzerainty of Majapahit and paid their taxes and other dues.
The Bhujanggas and Mantrls from Majapahit visited these
states to collect these dues, and the former possibly took
advantage of this opportunity to make a supervision of religious
endowments.

i f Groeneveldt Notes, pp. 16-17.

INDEX

Abhimanottunga Samanta 182

Abiasa (Vyasa) 95

Abulfida 209-212,

Abu Zayd Hasan 156, 161, 210, 217

Accra 58, 59

Achinese 10, 118

Adesasastrins 432

Adhamapanuda 269

Adhimukti 150

Aditya 73

Adityavarmadeva 365-368

Airlangga 258-279, 433

Aiyangar Prof. S. K. 179, 186

Ajapatha 56, 59

Aji Ma-ra-ya (Maharaja) 265

Aji Saka 94-97

Aji Wangbang 429

Alauddin (Alaoadim) 385

Alberuni 21, 40, 45 47 '64, 212

Albuquerque 383, 386, 397, 4*

Alexander 20

Allahabad Pillar Ins. 107

Allasanda 56

Anengah (Anusapti) 293.

Anga-dvipa 52, 53

Anganeka 56

Angkavijaya 407

Angrok (Rajasa, Amurvvabhumi)

292-294

Anuapati (Anuanatha) 294
A-pu-sai 375
Aragani 301
Arddharaja 302, 308
Argapura 238

Argyre 49i 55

Arjunavijaya 328

Arjunavivaha 274

Arthasastra 38, 54, 55, 61

Aru 374

Aryabhatiya 119

Arya Damar 406

Aryan 18

Aryyavangsadhiraja 365

Astaguna 287

Astina (Hastinapura) 94, 95

Asvavarman (Asvatthama) 126, 127

Atwal 212

Aurousseau 217

Austro-nesian 12

Ayodhya 429

Babad Tanah Javi 406

Badong 427

Bagchi, P. C. 16

Bakulapura 298, 299

Balambangan 427

Balaputradeva 152-154, 232

Bali 1-3, u, 132-137, 261-265,298,

327, 33 2 -334, 419-428, 436
Baligami 189
Banak Wide 301
Bandar Bapahat 189
Bandon 83-87
Bangli 427
Barabudur 153, 154
Barawa 53

Barbosa, Duarte 398, 404
Barousai 49, 120

INDEX

Barus (Karpur Barus) 52

Basma (Pase) 369

Batak 10, 118

Bataratamurel (Bha^ara Tumapel)

384

Batik 33-36
Batu Pahat 130
Batu Rcnggong 426-7
Batur Ins. 334
Batu-Tulis Ins. 358
Bawang rakryan 259
Bedahulu 425
Berg 425, 426
Bhagadato 73
Bharada 276
Bharatavarsa 45, 50, 51
Bharatayuddha 283
Bharukaccha 37, 56
Bhatara Dwaravarman 102
Bhatara Guru 273
Bhatara Prabhu (Suraprabhava,

Singhavikramavardhana) 352
Bhimaprabhava 269
Bhra Krtabhumi 351-353
Bhre Daha 341-343
Bhre Pamotan (Sri Rajasavardhana

Sinagara) 351

Bhre Pandan Salas 351, 354
Bhre Prabhu istri 342, 343
Bhre Tumapel 342, 343, 35 1
Bhre Vengker 351
Bhujangga 436
Bhumicandra 215
Blagden 26, 52, 72-75, 39O
Bloch. J 16
Borneo 2, 3, 10, n, 22, 29, 135-131,

138, 165, 299, 325. 333> 334 345,

412-418
Bosch 234, 303, 365

Brahmaraja Ganggadhara 355
Brandes 33-35, 3<>7> 3", 341
Bravijaya 406
Brhatkatha-mafijari 37
Brhatkatha-Sloka-Sarhgraha 37, 58,

61

Hrhat-Samhita 41, 75
Brumbung 281

Budhagupta 48, 82, 83, 89, 90
Bugis ii
Buleleng 427
Burma 46-50, 186, 187
Buzurg bin Sahriyar 41

Caiya (Chaiya) 81-86, 90, 195-1 97,

216

Cakradhara (or Cakresvara) 327
Calcutta Stone Ins. 272
Cambodia 159, 160, 225,336
Candi Kalasan 1 53
Candrabhanu 197-200, 216
Candrabhayasinghavarmmadeva

420

Candrasvamin 51
Cangal Ins. 99, 229, 234, 243, 249
Canggu 297
Canton 165, 349

Carita Parahyangan 230, 360, 419
C'ayaraja (or Bhayaraja) 300
Celebes 2, 10, u, 29, 333
Ceylon 56, 57, 63, I97'i99i 216, 271
Champa 63, 7o, 79. I QI IIO 12 7,

155* ! 57> 165, 166, 271, 336
Cham record 158
ChangCh*ien4i6
Ch'a-ri-ya-ka (Hu-lan-na-po) 135
Chattapatha 56, 60
Chaudhury, S, B. 50
Chau Hang 416

INDEX

Chau Ju-Kua 71, 134, 176-178, 192-

200,218,288-291, 357, 380,414
Chavannes 205
Che eul yeou king (Buddhist Sutra)

121
Che-li-fo-che (or ri-Vijaya, Fo-che)

41, 120, 204, 209, 217-220
Che-li-p'o-ta-t'o-a-la-pa-mo, King

of Cho-p'o 102
Che-li t'o-lo-pa-mo (Srindravarman),

King of Sri-Vijaya 124
Che-li Wou-ye 165
Chen dynasty, History of 80, 220
Cheng Ho 344, 374, 3^2
Che-pi 3*3-3i5 3*7
Che-p'o-lo-na-lien-to (Snvaranaren-

dra) 79
Chhabra, B. C. 81, 89, 114, 122,

126, 130

China 184, 382,416, 418
Cho-p'o (Cho-p'o-p'o-ta) 101-102,

104, 119, 157, 166
ChS-ye 121

Chryse 4-6, 39, 42-$o, 55
Chryse Ohersonesus 40, 42, 46-49, 69
Chryse Chora 40, 42, 46
Ch'uan-chou 192, 314
Chu-fan-chi 192
Ci-aruton 106, 107
Cibadak 356
Cina 38, 56
Clifford 5
Coedes7i,72, 120, 122, 155, 170.

175, 193-198, 204-207, 221, 227,

392

Cola 5, 167 ff
Co-Ion (Kuen-Luen) 157
('ommentaires d' Albuquerque 383

386, 392, 398

Cordier 79

Culamanivarman (Cu^amanivarman)

168, 196, 207, 218, 220
Culamanivarma-Vihara 168, 182
Cullavarhsa 197, 216

Daba 157

Dagroian 369

Daha 278, 316, 324, 327. 339, 349

Daksottama 242-246, 259

Da Napati, historian 77

Dangdang Gendis 287, 292

Dantapura 6, 7

Dara Jingga 320, 364

Dara-Petak (Indrcsvaii) 320, 364

Daripatha 56, 60

Das Gupta 18

Da Sura wan, historian 77

Dayaks 10

De Barros 384, 386, 393, 395, 400

Dedes 292-294

Deva-agung 428

Deva-agung Ketut 426

Devaniskala 358, 360

Devapala 152

Devasimha 249

Devasmita 51

Dtva Sura, Maharaja 382

Devavarman 100

Devendra, Linuis Sii 240

Dharmadhikaranas 434

Dharmadhyakas 435

Dharmapala 39, 144^ 232

DharmaprasadottungadevI 272

Dharmasetu 153, 232-3

Dliarmavarfisa 166, 362, 264-269,

279. 420

Dharmaya 258, 282
Dhaimesvara Digjaya 284

INDEX

Dharmodaya Mahasambhu (Balitung)

241, 2 42
Dharmodayanavarmadeva 420

Dimaski 53, 192, 209

Dinaya Ins, 248

Dionysius Periegetes 39, 42, 44

Dipankara A lisa 39, 75

Divyavadana 45

Dixon, Roland B, II

Djaba (Djawaga) 213-215, 224

Dompo 327, 329

Douglas 19

Dravidian 14

Dusun 10

Dutch 427-8

Dva-pa-tan 137

Edrisi 53, 192, 196, 213
Elavaddhana 56
Etienna 40
Eustathios 40
Evans 80

Fa-hien 103, 105, 119, 140

Fah-yu 379

Fa-lang 143

Fan-Chan 62

Fancur 214

Fanur (Pansur or Baros) 41, 369

Fei Hsin 393

Ferlec (Perlak) 3<>9-37i 374

Ferrand 14, 16, 47, $2, 53, 7*. 78,

79, loo, 102, 119-122, 192, 210,

217, 237, 363, 372
Fo-lo-an 194
Foucher 75

Fou-nan 55, 62, 70, 86, 101
Founan t'ou Sou tchouan 101
Fruin-Mees 31

Gajah Enggon 338

Gajah Mada 323-327, 337, 406-408,

425, 433

Gajah Manguri 340
Gajayana 249
Galanai, Mahasenapati 195
Galuh 359, 360
Ganapatha 60
Gahga 226
Gahgana 56

Gange (Gangai) 173, 174
Ganter 293
Garuda Purana 51
Gaspar Correa 383
Gata Ins. 243
Gauda 336
Gavampati 39
Gayatri 320
Gayo 10, 118
Gelgt-1 425, 426
Gemelan 33-36
Gentayu 273
Gerini 25, 42, 43, 69, 78, 81, 175,

205, 220

Ghatotkacasraya 284

Gianj^r 427

Gulndravardhana 408

Godinho de Eredia 384

Goris 238, 243-245

Grahi 195, 197, 380

Grierson 21

Gromeveldt 76, 78, 97, 101, 102,

in, 113, 114, >33-'37, M5-U7,

192,219.313,412.436
Guhasena 51
Gujrat 94-96
Gumba 56
Guijavarman (K'ieou-na-pa-mo) 104,

141

INDEX

Gupta Inscriptions 107

Gurun (Gorong or Goram) 298, 327

Ha-ch'i-su-wu-ch'a-p'u-mi 182

Haji-SumatrabhQmi 183, 185

Han dynasty 97, 380

Hangchu 165

Han-yti 221

Haraki 41, 45, 210

Harikela 74

Harivarhsa 54, 55, 284

Harladj (Haridj) 213

Harsacarita of Hana 74

Hawiya of Ibn Majid 79

Hayam Wuruk 274, 286, 294,306,328

Henrique Leme 404

Heu-Han-Shu 100

Hiang-ta 413

Hia-tche 165

Hia-wang 416

Hia-Wu, Emperor 79

Hikayat Maroh Mahawarisa 72, 203,

392

Hikayat Rajaraja Pasay 333
Hi-ning-Kuan 315
Hippalus 6
Hirth 193
Hiuen Tsang 21, 52, 71-73, 82, 112,

177

Ho-ling 112
Ho-lo-tan, Kingdom of 102, 103,

III, 112

Hornell, J. 18-23
Hsing-ch'a Sheng-lan of Fei Hsin

Huang-tche 70
Huber 71
Hui-ning 143

Hujung Galuh 272

Hultzsch 172

Hutton. J. H. 19-23

Hyang Visesa (Yang Wi-si-sa) 341-

343 348
Hyang Wekasing Sukha 340

labadios 49

Ibadiou (=Yavadvipa) 98-100, 119

Ibn al-Fakih 161, 214

Ibn Battita 371-373

Ibn Khordadzbeh 160, 208, 213

Ibn Majid 221

Ibn Rosteh 161, 213

Jbn Said 14, 47, 52, 53, 192, 210, 212

Ibn Serapion 161

Ibrahim bin Waif Sab 52, 163, 210

Idangai 189

Ijzerman 256

llamurides'am 174, 177

Ilangasogam 173, 176

Indradvipa 50

Indraloka 429

Indrapura 157

Indravarman I 158

Tsanabajra 269

Isanadharma 282

Isanatunggavijaya 261

Isana-Vikrama Dharmottungadeva

259

Ishak bin 'Imran 161
Isidore of Seville 40
Isvaravarma 38, 45
I-tsing 26, 41, 71, 120-123, 137, 142-

144, 175

Jaka-Dolok Ins. 302
Jakun 10, 12

5

INDEX

Jambudvipa 336

Janasadhuvarmadeva 420

Janggala 276-280, 289, 293, 422

Jannupatha 56, 60

Jataka 37, 60, 61

Jatakamala 37

Jajavarman Vira Pancjya 198, 216

Java 2,3, ii, 32-34, 91-H5, 138,
153-160, 200-206, 233-275, 298-
307, 3 1 3-355, 373 378, 401-411

Javaka (Savaka, Davaka) 198, 199,

215
Jaya Baya (Jayabhaya) 95, 281,

283
Jayakatvang 301, 308, 311, 315-

318

Jayakirtivardhana Gvvas Sri 240
Jayakrta 284
Jayanagara 320-326
Jayanta 150

Jayantakatunggadeva 279
Jayasabha 293
Jayasimhavarman IV 300
Jayavarman II 157, 159
Jayavarsa Digjaya 280
Jembrana 427
Jiianabhadra 143
Joao Lopez Alvin 403
Jogyakerta 93, 151, 236
Julien 83

Kadambari (of Bana) 45

Katfaram (Kidaram) 168, 173, 178,

184-188, I99 216, 380
Ka<Jiri (Kediri) 93, 276-293* 3 OI >

305> 309-318, 353
Kajunan Ins. 284
Kala or Kora (Kora Fu-Sa-ra) 7,

76, 170, (See Kalah)

Kala Gemet 320

Kalah 162, 196, 212-214 (See Kala)

Kalamukha 56

Kalang 314, 3*6

Kalasa (Var. Kalasavarapura,

Kalasapura), 74-76, 151
Kalasan Ins. 150, 153, 205, 232,

236
Kalinga 6, 7, 95, 96, 112, 153, 179-

181, 226, 271, 379
Kalungkung 407
Kalyani Inscriptions 46
Kama-lahka (see Lang-ya-su),7i-75,

177

Kamandaka 429
Kamarnava 226
Kamboja (Cambodia) 155
Kamesvara (Bamesvara) 281-287
Kanaka 350
Kanakavarman 51
Kancanapura 45
Kandari (Kadara) 79
K'ang T'ai 62, 101
Kan-to-li or Kin-to-li (San-bo-tsai,

Khanthuli or Kanturi, Kandari,

Kadara) 78-80, 218, 220
Kan>akumari Ins, 174
Kaosen tchouan (or Biography of

famous monks) 104
Kapakisan 425
Kapulungan 309
Karangasem 426-7
Karangtengah Ins. 238
Kariyana Panamkarana 232
Karmarahga (Carmarahga) 74
Karpura -dvipa 52
Kaserumat 50

Ka^aha 38, 51, 168, 170, 172, 178,
196, 207, 298, 380

INDEX

Kataha-dvipa 51, 52* ^9
Kathakosa 37, 38
Kathasarit-Sagara 37, 45> 51* 52, 75>

76, 222

Katyayana 60
Kau Hsing 313, 316-318
Kaundinya 126, 134
Kavali Ins. 359
Kayan 10
Kayuwangi, Sri Maharaja rakai

238

Kazwini 192

Kebantenan Copperplates 359
Kebon Kopi 356
Kebo Tengah 308
Keddah 9, 51, 71, 80, 81, 89, 170,

207

Kedu Ins. 160, 223, 231-238, 244
Kedung Pluk 309
Kelagen Ins. 272
Kelurak Ins. 151, 153; 205, 233
Kenyah 10
Kern 13, 30, 82, 89, 106, 114. 126,

127, 365

Kesarivarma 420
Ke{a 327
Ketudhara 433
Khasi 14

Khau Phra Narai 81
Khersonese (Golden) 25, 42
Khmer 156

Khryse or Chryse Insula 42
Kia-Siang-li 62
Kidung Rangga Lawe 322
Kidung Sunda 329, 425
Kien-pi 194
Ki-lan-tan 194
Kill Suci 273
King liu yi Siang 121

Kin-tcheu 41

Kirana 283

Kiratas45, 55

K 4 iu-t'an-sieou-pa-to-lo (Gautama

Subhadra) 79
Ki-yen 236
Kling 7, 95
Klungkung 426-8
Ko-ku-la 379
Ko-lo-cho-fen (Kia-lo-cho-fou, Kia-

lo-cho-fo) 75. 76
Kombeng 128, 129
Koppam 181
Korinchis n8
Kota Kapur 122
Kot. Monthieraban 381
Krom 7, 18, 26, 28, 36. 79> 8 2, 98,

in, 112, 114, i*5 120, 122,

127-128, 155, 203, 205, 230, 235,

257, 261-263, 281, 285, 289, 294.

3<>3-3o7> 3H. 340, 352, 365, 404
Krsnayana 280
Krtajaya 286-288, 292
Krtanagara 200, 260, 297 - 36
Krtarajasa (Vijaya) 319-321, 433
Krtavijaya 351
Kublai Khan 300, 312
Kudamrta (Vijayarajasa) 327
Ku-Kang 202, 216
Kulottunga 181, 184-188
Kumara, book of (Skanda or

Karttikeya) 282
Kumarayajfia 429
K'u-ma-r Maharaja 383
Kun^uhga (Kaundinya) 126-128
Kusa-dvipa 52
Kusumavarddhani 339
Kutaraja 293
Kutaramanava 435

7

INDEX

Kutei Ins. 126, 139
Kuti 323

Lacote 37, 58

Laidlay 88-90

Lajonquiere 83

Lambri ( Lamuri or Great Atjeh )

369-371, 374
Lam pongs 10, 118
Langkawi 65

Lang-ya-su 70-75, 145, 146, 194
Lankadvlpa 62
Lankavatara Sutra 21
Lan-wu-li 194
Lara-Jongrang 235
Lebongs 118

Leiden Grant 168, 170, 182,208
Lembu Ampal 295
Lenkasuka 53
L6vi. S 6, 16-24, 53, 5* 69, 73-75,

177
Liang Dynasty, History of, 70, 72,

78, 134, 220
Liang-Shu 86
Liang Tau-ming 203
Ligor 81, 82, 90, 122, 149, 153,

205-209, 219, 225
Linggapati 297
Ling-wai-tai-ta 193
Li-si-lin-nan-mi-je-lai 165
Li-tai 374
Li-tche-ti 164
Lobu Tua 188

Lo-cha-lo-cha (Rajaraja) 184
Lokanatha (Avalokitesvara) 45
L ok a pa la 261
Lombok i, ii, 333428
Low, Col. 89
Lvaram 266

Madagascar 2, 19, 22, 23
Madamalingam 174, 177
Madhura (Madura) 298, 299, 310,

311
Madura 91, 93, 97, 298, 299i 3*o,

3Ui325

Mahabharata 17, 20, 94-96, 429
Mahajanaka 37
Mahakarma-Vibhanga 39
Ma-ha-la 388

Ma-ha-la-Ch'ih (Maharaja) 418
Mahapati 321-324
Maharaja 155, 160-163
Maharaja Prabu 202
Maharasa 376
Mahavarhsa 21, 39, 63, 176
Mahendradatta (Gunapriyadharma-

patni) 262, 420-423
Mahenjo-daro 19, 22
Mahisa Campaka 295, 296
Mahia Walungan 293
Mahisa Wong Ateleng 294
Mahmud (Muhammad, Ma-ha-mu-sa,

Mamat) 385-391, 396
Ma-Huan 218, 374-376, 386, 393, 401
Majapahit 297, 308-318, 339-344,

353)425,436
Majumdar, N. G. 153
Majumdar, S. N. 50
MakutavarhSavardhana 261
Malacca 7, 347, 348, 379, 383-405
Ma-la-cha Wu-li 202
Malaiyur 173, 175
Malang 93, 297

Malay (Malaya, Malava) 19-25
Malaya-dvipa 52, 53, 69
Malay Archipelago 1-3, 46, 333>33&,

345 382
Malayas (Proto- Malay as) 10, 23-25

INDEX

Malayasia i, 4-8, 19, 24, 26-36,

138-145.149, i53-'55
Malay Peninsula i, 7, 29, 41-43,

65-90, 138, 149, 153-' 55, 165,

178, 191-201, 204-227, 299, 333,

33 6 , 345. 347, 378-400
Malayu 22, 120, 121, 123, 175, 195-

201, 298, 305, 3 20 33, 363-368
Maleou Kolon 25, 26
Mali ioi, 134) 136
Malik al-Saleh 370
Malik az-Zahir 371
Malik Ibrahim 401
Malur Ins. 173
Malurpatna 171
Ma-Mo-Sha 414
Ma-na-ha-pau-lin-pang 202
Manakkavaram 174, 177
Mandikere Ins. 174
Mangalore 23
Manimekhalai 215
MafijugrimQlakalpa 74, 75
Mankir 41
Man-Shu 413

Mansur Shah 382, 385-391, 396
Mantri 433, 436
Manuel 403

Manu-Smrti 107, 429, 431
Mapafiji Alafijung Ahyes 279
Mappappalam 173, 176
Maraja 264
Maranapara 56-7
Marcien 40

Marco Polo 177, 307, 365, 3 6 9, 374
Marines of Tyre 40
Martianus Capella 40, 48
Marukantara 56
Maspero 157
Mas'udI 156, 162, 198, 210

Mataram 229-257, 427
Matsya-purana 20, 60
Ma-Twan-Lin 165, 182, 184, 192, 221
Ma-wou (Ma-li) ioi
Mayiruqlihgam 173, 176
Mazafar Shah (Modafaixa) 386-

39^ 396

M'c. Crindle 6, 21, 25
Mendhapatha 56, 59
Mengui 427

Mevilimbahgam 72-75, i74> *77
Milindapafiha 38, 56, 60, 6 1, 177
Ming-Chu 165
Ming dynasty, History of 78, 97,

201-203, 218, 336, 337, 341-348.

374, 382, 386-395; 4*3
Ming-ti 77
Minto-Stone 247
Mi-Si-Po-ra 76
Mitra, R. L. 89
Moens 304-307
Mo-lo-yeu 120
Mon-Khmer 14, 19
Muara Kaman 126-129
Mudra-Raks.asa 20
Mulavarman 126, 127, 140
Munda 14-16
Mundarang Kebo 310
Murut 10

Musikapatha 56, 60
Muusses, Dr. M. A. 352, 354

Nadikera, Island 74, 75

Nagadatta 38

Nagapattana 168

Nagara-Krtagama 71, 97, 175, 178,
269, 274, 276-279, 292-299, 302-
307, 3i3 318-336, 357/ 368, 373
425, 434/ 435

INDEX

Nagaravarddhani 339

Nagarl Inscriptions 86

Nagipattana 168

Nakhon Sri Dhammarat (Ligor)

81, 83-86
Na-Ku-erh 374
Nakur 376
Nalanda Copper-plate Ins. of

Devapala 152, 154, 160, 169,

221-223, 232
Nambi 310, 322
Nanadesi 188
Nandin (Nan-t'i) 105
Nan-Shi 77

Narendra (Tsvara Narendra) 79
Narikela-dvipa 52, 74
Narottama 273
Nasik Ins. 20
Ngabean Ins. 238, 432
Nicephorus 40
Niddesa 39 5 6 -58> 61, 69
Nirartha 427

Niskalavastu Kancana 358-361
Nitipraya 4 2 9
Norman, Sir Henry 68
Nusa Kendeng 32, 95
Nuwayri4i, 53

Oman 162

Padang Rocho, 196, 200, 299

Paduka Pa-ha-la 418

Paduka Prabu (Prabhu) 418

Pagan 189

Pahang (Pa-hoang or Po-houang) 9*

66, 68, 77, 193, 200, 327, 33*>

382

Pakwan Pajajaran 358-362
Pa-la-mi-so-la-ta-lo-si-ni 382

Palembang 122, 154, I95 205,

217-220, 327, 384, 394
Palian 67
Paloura 6, 7, 226
Pamaficangah 425
Pamget 434

Pa-mi-si-wa-r-tiu-pa-sha 388
Pamotan Ins. 272
Panamkarana (Paficapana, Kariyana)

I5L 223
Panangkaran Sri Maharaja rakai

232

Panataran 286
Pandangkrayan Ins 272
Pandu Deva Natha (Pantfu) 95
Panembahan Siti Luhur 411
Pangkur 432
Panini 20
Pafijalu 276-278
Pafiji Patipati 295
Pafiji Tohjaya 294
Pafiji Vijayakrama 310-313, 320
Pannai 173, 175
P'an-p'an 76, 86
Panuluh 284
Parakramabahu II 197
Paramagangana 56
Paramayona 56

Paramesvara (Parimisura) 384-394
Paramesvari (SusumnadevI) 329
Paramesvari dyah Kebi, rakryan

binihaj Sri 259
Parantaka I 167

Pararaton 287, 292-295, 3i"37;
310-318, 320-328, 340-344, 35 1 '

358
Para-Samudra 55, 56

Pasa (Pase) 56
Pasuruhan 427

INDEX

Pataftjali 60

Patapan rakai 238

Pate Udra 404

Pati Katir 403

Pati Rodien 403

Pati Unus 403, 409

Pelliot 71-73, 77-80, 100, 102, Hi,

113, 114, 133-136, 193. 349, 363,

372, 387

Penang 65. 68, 88
Perak 9, 66, 68, 81
Perak, A History of 81
Perez d' Andrade 403
Periplus 4-6, 39, 44, 46, 48, 56,

58, 69

Perot Ins. 238
Perumber Ins. 181, 187
Pigafetta 404

Pikatan rakai (pu Manku) 238
Pin-Ka 135
Pitamahas 432
P'i-ye-pa-mo ( Vijaya Varman or

Priyavarman ?) 79
Pi-yuan-pa-mo 79
Plaosan 235
Pleyte 357

Pliny 39, 44. 48, 50, 58. 6 9
Poerbatjaraka 259, 262, 268, 281,

296, 322, 359* 432
P'o-li 133-U7

Pomponius Mela 39, 42, 44, 48
Po-Nagar 157
Pong-fong 194
Pordenon, Odoric Van 325
Porlak Dolok 189
Po-to-Kia, King of Java 105
Po-U-Daung Ins. 47
Prakrtivirya 287
Prambanan 235, 240, 243-245

Pre-Aryan and Pre-Dravidian in

India 73
Prinsep 89
Prtuvijaya 287
Przyluski, L 16, 24, 99, 227
Ptolemy 6, 21, 25, 40, 42, 49, 69, 74

83, 98-100
Pucangan 273
Puket 67, 84
Pula Sara (Parasara) 95
Pulaw Emas 47
P'u Lu-hsieh 413
Pu-ni 334, 345, 414
Punyaraja 215
Purnavarman 106-114, 140

Quaritch Wales. H. G. 84-87, 153,
225

Raden Patah 406

Haden Usen 406

Raffles, Sir Stamford 94, 235, 430

Raganatha 301

Rahma 214

Rahmat 406

Kajadhiraja 181

Kajanlti 429

Rajapatigundala 303

Rajaraja 167-171

Rajasanagara (Hayam Wuruk) 328-

339

Paja Suran 188
Kajavidyadhara Samanta 182
Rajendra Cola 71, 74, 167, 172-175,

179-181
Rakryan 433
Rakta-mrttika 82, 83
Kama Garhheng 201
Ramafifiadesa 46, 176

II

INDEX

Ramayaga 20, 42, 53, 54, 9 8 "9,

222, 429
Ramayaga-mafijari (of Kemendra)

54,55
Kami (Ramni) 162, 163, 271

Ragavijaya 354

Ranggah Rajasa 292

Rangga Lawe 310, 322

Rangga Wuni 295-297

Ranong 67

Rasid-ad-DIn 370

Ratnabhumi 429

Raveya 429

Ray Chaudhury. H. C. 56

Rejangs 118

Ricci 221

Rockhill 193, 387

Rouffaer 102, 176, 2 3 1,2 60, 268,274*

290, 372, 378, 404, 4io
Rudra 38
RupyakadvH>a 62

Sabadios 49, 120

Saddhammappajotika 58

Saddhai ma-Smrtyupasthana-Sutra 54

Sadeng 327

Saila 226

Sailendra 86, 121, 138, 149-227, 236

Sailodbhava 226

Sajara Malayu 396

Sajivan 235

Sajjanotsavatungga (Svami Kayu-

wangi, Sukri) 239
Sakai 10, 12
Sakunapatha 56, 59
Salahit (Salahat) 213
Samara (Samudra) 369-376
Samaragravira 153, 160, 223, 232

238

Samarottunga 160, 223, 238

Sambawa 427

Sambharasuryavarana 260

Sarfikhya 435

Sampit 130

Samprangan 425

Samudra-dvipa 55

Samudragupta 215

Samudrasura 38, 76

San-fo-tsi (San-fo-tsai) 78-9, 164-

166, 193-197) 200-205, 217-222,

265, 334, 346
Sang belirang 130
Sanggau 130

Sang hyang Kamahayanikan 260
Sang hyang Tapak 357
Sangrama-Vijayottungavarman 173-

175

Safijaya 229 239
ankha-dvipa 52
Sahkupatha 56, 60
Sannaha 229,234
Santri 406
Sanudasa 37, 58, 59
Saptopapatti 434
Sari-Pala-Varma, King of Pahang

77

Sarkar. H. B. 96
Sasak 427
Sasanavarhsa 39
astrajaya 293
Sastri, Mr. Krishna 367
Sastri, Pandit H. 153, 222
Sastri, Prof. K. A. N. 167, 187, 227
Satul 67

Satyavarman 158
Schlegel 77, 102, I33"I3^ 176, 374

379
Schmidt 14-16, 19-23

12

INDEX

Schnitger 106, 295

Sdok Kak Thorn Ins. 157

Sedan 282

Seh Walilanang 406

Sekandar Shah (Xaquendarxa) 385-

39i, 395
Selinsing 8l, 84

Semang (Semang Negritos) 9, 12
Sendang Kamal Ins. 264
Sending Sedati 352, 354
Sengguruh 409
Seng-Ka-liet-yu-lan 202
Sepauk 130
Serat Kanda 407
Shau-Sheng 184
Shih-li-lo-cha-yin-to-lo-chu-lo

(ii Rajendra) 184
Sho-po 288-290
Siam 201, 336, 364, 3 8l -3$7> 3<>o,

391

Sidoteka Ins. 432
Sien-lieou 165
Si-Ian 194

Si-li hou-ta Hia-li-tan 104
Silingkia (ringa) 145
Si-li-tieh-hwa (rl Deva) 183, 185
Si-ma, Queen of Java 113
Sindok (Sri Isanadharma) 248, 258-

262

Singapore 7, 65, 335, 384
Singhasari 243, 258,292-311, 319
Sin-to 194, 288, 290
SIraf 163
Siiahketing 280
Sirandib 163
Sirazl 41
Siva-sasana 264

Smaradahana-Kavya, 258, 282, 285
Solinus 39

Sora 310, 322

Sorandaka 322

Srihuza 47, 120, 162-164, 210, 217

ii-Dharmaraja 201

ii-Jayanasa (Jayanasa Jayanaga,

Jayawaga) 123, 143
rl Mahaiaja 150, 191
Jii-Mara-Vijayottuhgavarman 168-

170. 207, 218, 220
ii-pada-dhara ( or dhara ) Varmari

102

Srl-pacia Purnavarman 102

Sii-Vijaya (Sri Visaya, Sribuza) 8,
41,45-47, 7*1 78, 120-124, M2-
44, I53-I55, 162-164, 168, 170,
204-211, 217-223

SiI-Vi$aya (See ri-Vijaya) 168, 170

Srngga 286

Stutterheim 206, 223, 230-235, 244,
259, 261, 263, 268, 306, 420, 43 2

Subhuti-tantra 260

Suhica 340, 341, 35

Sui (period) in, 135, 13*

Su-kan-la (Sekander) 375

Sukhodaya 201

Su-ki-tan 288-290

Sulayman 156-161, 213, 216

Sumanasantaka 281

Sumatra 2, 3, 10, 18, 22, 28, 43, 47,
116-124, 149. 153, i?Si 178,
188-200, 205, 271, 299, 333, 347,

363-377

Sumbawa 332, 335
Sunan Giri 406
Sunan Kudus 407
Suntfa 93 94, 298, 299, 327-329.

356-362, 409
Sundara 38
Sungai Batu Estate 80

INDEX

Sung dynasty, History of 77, 78,
102, 103, 166, i6g, 182, 220, 253,
264, 288, 413, 435

Sung-Shih 184

Suparkadeva 429-30

Suppara 56

Supparaka-Jataka 37

Surabaya 93, 241, 242, 260, 269, 272,

303. 432

Surakarta 92, 237i 254
Suratjha 56
SQryasiddhanta 119
Susumnadevi 329
Sutasoma 328
Suvannabhumi 56
Suvannakuta 56

Suvarnadvipa 37-64, 69, 138-147
Suvarnnapura 45

Tabanan 427

Tabanendravarmadeva 420

Tadjau, Maharaja 382

Tagalas u

Takakusu 165

Takkasila 56

Takkola 7, 38, 56, 70, 81

Takua Pa 67, 81, 82, 84-86, 90

Takuatung 67

Talaittakkolam 174, 177

Tamali 56

Tambapanni $6

Tamil Inscriptions 71

Tarn r ad vi pa 62

Tamralipti 51

Tanah Malayti 65

Taftca 326

Tang dynasty, History of 43, 75,

76, 78, 111-113, I33-I37, 236,

250-252, 379, 412

Tanjore Ins. 173, 174, 179

Taftjungpura 325, 327, 33*

Tan-ma-ling 194

Tan-ma-sa-na-ho 202

Tao-hong 143

Tapasi 300

Tara 151-153, 233

Taruma (Taruma, Tarumapur) 106,

HO, III
Ta-tsin 143
Tavan 432
Tazi 113, 114
Tcheng-Kou 143

Tchou-Lieou-to (Rudra,the Indian) 7
Tchou-po 101, 119
Tchou Ying 101
Temo 9

Tenasserim (Nankasi) 71
Tengaran Ins. 259
Ternate 10
Thai 201
Theodulf4o
'J'hera Son^ 39
Thera Uttara 39
Thomson 16

Thousand and One Nights 52
Tiao-Pien ioo
Tidore 10

Ti-hwa-ka-la 183-186
Tiimitaraja (Utimutaraja) 397
Tirip 432

Tirumalai Ins. 179
Tiruvalangadu plates 171
Tittirajataka 60
Ti-wa-kalo 184-186
Tohjaya 294-296
Tokoon 82, 88
To-1ang-p'o-houang (Tulangbawang)

120

INDEX

Tflng-ya-n&ng 194

T'oung Pao 22, 26, 70, 73, 7% 78,

79, 97. 10*. 133, 134, 142, 145
Tou-po in, 119
Trailokyaraja-mauli-bhusana-varma-

deva 195

Trawulan Ins. 432, 435
Tribhuvanaraja-mauli-varma-deva

196, 200, 299
Tribhuvanottunggadevi Jayavinu-

vardhani (GUarjja) 326
Triguna 280
Iritresta 95
Truneng Ins. 271
Tsai-nu-li-a-pi-ting-ki 375
Tsien-han shu 70
Tuhan Janaka (ri Maradeva, Haji

Montrolot) 320
Tuk Mas 114, 115, 140
Tuloclong 246, 258
Tumapel 288-290, 293, 351
Tung Hsi yang K'au 412
Tung Tuk 8 1

Tun Mutahir Sri Maharaja 397
Tun-Sun 145

Udayana 262

Ugrasena 420

U ndung (Sunan Kudus) 407

Usana Jawa 425

Uttungadeva 273

Vailavarman 103
Vajadrava 283
Vajrabodhi 21, 144
Valaippanduru 174, 177
Valangai 188
Vamana Purana 51
Vaihsapatha 56

Van der Lith 372

Vanga 56

Van Naerssen 434-5

Van Stein Callenfels 14

Vaprakesvara (rakryan Kanuruhan)

282

Varaha-dvipa 52, 53
Varingin Sapta (Vringin pitu) 272
Varmasetu (Dharmasetuj 153, 232-3
Varsajaya 280
Varusaka (Haros, Sumatra) Island,

74-5

Vat Sema Murong Ins, 123
Vayu Purana 52, 53, 60,
Vengi 1 86

Vengker, king of 270
Venkayya 176
Verapatha 56
Vesun^a 56

Vettadhara (or Vettacara) 56, 59
Vijaya 270,

Vijaya (Krtarajasa) 301, 308-321
Vijayabahu 198

Vijayade\ i (Rajadevf Manarajasa) 327
Vijayaditya VII 186
Vijayamahadevi 420
Vijayarajasa 425

Vikramavarddhana 339-343, 348-350
Vimanavatthu 60, 61
Virabahu 197

Virabhflmi 339, 343'345i 35O
Viraraja 301, 311, 322
Virarajendra 181, 184-187
Vira-vairi-mathana 233
Visnugupta, book of, 270
Vi^nuvarman 8l, 150
Vogel 150, 107-110, 126, 127, 150,

205
Vuatan Mas 271

INDEX

Vuravari 266, 270
Vy5sa 429

Wai kouo tchouan 101

Wajang 33-36 ^

Waleri (Meleri) 297

Wallace 2, IT

Wang Ta-yuen 201, 373, 414

Wan-li 416

Wassaf-i-Hadrat 372

Wates-Kulen 287

Watuhumalang rakai 240

Watuku'a rakai 233-235

Wawa 246-248, 258

Wellesley Province 80-82, 88, 89

Wilkinson, R. J. 155, 188, 224, 400

Wong Majapait 426

Wu-pin 3 45, 347

Yajfiavati 429
Yakut 41, 45, 210
Yama-chipa (Yamako^i) 52, 53

Yang Tikuh i 58
Yalaljketu 3?
Yavabhumi 152, 154
Yavabhumi-pala 152, 155
Yavad\Ipa 32, 49* 54, 75, 98-100

103, 109
Yen-mo-na 112
Ye-p'o-t'i 103, 1 19
Ye-Tiao 100, 119
Yi-U'o-mu-su 313, 316-318
Yin-Ch'ing 386
Yona 56

Yuan dynasty, History of 313
Yuan-fung 183
Yu<ihishthira 429
Yun-ki 143

Zabag ( or Zabaj ) 40, 44, 47, 155,

158-164, 192, 196, 208-225
Zain-ul-Abedin 408
Zaman 32

16